The prime minister will report to Parliament more than twice each year on the work of meetings held with the European Council, was concluded at a meeting on Tuesday of the parliamentary Committee on the Constitution, Standing Orders and Political System which discussed a bill on cooperation between the Sabor and government concerning European affairs.
Possible amendments to the current provisions which foresee only two reports by the PM, were announced by the committee’s chairman Pedja Grbin of the ruling Social Democratic Party (SDP) led coalition, without explaining what the final standing orders would look like.
Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) MP Vladimir Seks said that two reports a year were insufficient and the prime minister should be obliged to report to parliament after every meeting of the European Council.
He added that the government should be obliged to submit its reports to the Sabor which Grbi objected to. Absolute obligation would hamper compromise which is one of the principles for the functioning of EU institutions, he said.
HDZ committee members objected to the idea that the Sabor would transfer its law making authorities to the new European Affairs Committee and suggested that the committee should be called “European Union Affairs”.
They also objected to the fact that his procedure had been left so late and now the bill had to undergo both readings and be adopted prior to July 1.