Algerian Council of the Nation to Discuss 8 Drafts
The Algerian Council of the National faces 'legislative pressure' starting Tuesday, after eight drafts were scheduled on its agenda, awaiting a decision before the end of June.
Parliamentary sources told Echorouk that the government is unlikely to extend the current session, unlike in previous legislative sessions.
This fact is reinforced by the absence of controversial amendments to the proposed legal texts, especially since the MPs did not introduce any changes that sparked widespread debate during their discussion of the same bills.
Scheduling two bills per day for the Council of the Nation, according to the same sources, will facilitate the pace of discussion and pave the way for ratification before the conclusion of the upcoming session at the end of June.
However, members of the upper house of parliament will face significant pressure due to the dense agenda and session schedule, especially since the debate will begin with a draft law amending and complementing the law regulating the organisation, functioning, and jurisdiction of the Court of Conflicts. This is the first draft scheduled for discussion on Tuesday.
During the same session, the provisions of the draft law on the prevention of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances and the suppression of their illicit use and trafficking will be discussed. This text is included within the legislation related to health and social security.
Discussions will also include other draft laws, the draft Criminal Procedure Code, a draft law on general mobilisation, a draft contract law, and a draft social insurance law.
On the economic front, a draft law on mining will be discussed, in addition to the draft budget settlement bill, one of the annual texts presented as part of the financial monitoring of public finance management.
This session is the first practical test for the 64 new members of the National Assembly, as they will participate for the first time in discussing draft laws in the upper chamber, during official sessions expected in the coming days.
Parliamentary sources confirm that the final versions of the draft laws did not undergo any controversial amendments during their discussion in the lower house, which may facilitate their approval within the specified deadlines, without the need to extend the session or initiate comprehensive discussions.
Article 138 of the Constitution stipulates that Parliament shall meet in one ordinary session per year, lasting ten (10) months, beginning on the second working day of September and ending on the last working day of June. The Prime Minister or the Head of Government, as appropriate, may request an extension of the ordinary session for a few days to complete the consideration of an item on the agenda.
The discussion sessions are expected to be closely monitored by various parliamentary blocs, given the importance of the issues under discussion, especially those related to projects that deal with sensitive social and economic aspects.
Previously, the Algerian Parliament, in both its chambers, witnessed an extension at the request of the government in previous sessions, whether due to the sensitivity and importance of the legal projects referred for discussion, or as a result of the inclusion of urgent texts that imposed themselves at the end of the session, which necessitated extending the work for a limited number of additional days to complete the study of the outstanding points and decide on them.
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