Parliamentary Control Research Articles

Forms and methods of parliamentary control according to the form of government

Forms and methods of parliamentary control according to the form of government

Публичната реч като лингвистично предизвикателство пред преводача и чуждоезиковото обучение

The current article examines Bulgarian public political speech as a challenge for the professional translators and as a series of political messages addressed to young people who study at higher educational institutions in Bulgaria. The article analyses the perception of clichéd constructions as well as the models of speech aggression which are widely practiced in different discussion formats such as election campaign debates, parliamentary control, public debates on TV where important public issues are discussed. The observations on the presidential election campaign in 2021 are also presented as well as the perception of the political messages by the nominees. The main conclusion from the scientific study shows that both Bulgarians and foreigners face problems with the grammatically correct sentence constructions behind which there is a minimum of information. The study also confirms the hypothesis that foreign students in Bulgaria recognize a number of common features between the political speech in our country and in their home countries. The clichés and the speech aggression are present in the global political speech as a component which defines the models of public speech and Bulgaria is no exception from that. A similar conclusion can be made about the interconnection between political and journalistic speech where the following common speech features can be recognized: inability to listen to the interlocutor; politicians slide over journalistic questions; the “self” overexposure, etc.

Особливості парламентського контролю над виконавчою владою в Іспанії

The article analyzes the parliamentary control over the executive branch in Spain. The exercise of the control function by the parliament is one of the most important components of its activity. The main purpose of parliamentary control is to identify key problems in the activities of state bodies, increase the efficiency of the public administration system and draw the attention of relevant state bodies and officials to the shortcomings identified during parliamentary control in order to eliminate them. The main procedures of the Spanish parliament are legislative activity, parliamentary control over the activities of the executive branch, ratification of international treaties, the appointment of national referendums and some others. A study of Spanish constitutional practice and national legislation on the interaction of the legislative and executive branches of government confirms that the mechanism for reviewing the Government’s activities includes two main elements: parliamentary control and the requirement of political accountability of the Government. Parliamentary control is the responsibility of the General Cortes, both chambers, while the requirement of political responsibility is limited to the Congress of Deputies. The lower house of parliament plays a more important role in this process, as it can only implement the requirement of political accountability of the Government. However, the Senate, excluded from the latter, may also exercise control over the Government, using in this case the full range of means provided for in the Spanish constitutional system.

ПАРЛАМЕНТ ТАДҚИҚОТ ХИЗМАТЛАРИ ФАОЛИЯТИНИНГ ҚИЁСИЙ-ҲУҚУҚИЙ ТАҲЛИЛИ

"This article analyzes the activities of parliamentary research services on the example of foreign experience. It highlights the need and sources of objective and reliable information for the legislature. The structure and functions of parliamentary research services of developed countries such as the United States, Canada, and France have been studied to provide scientific and information-analytical support to their parliamentary activities. Deep analysis of the activities of scientific services of parliaments (USA, Great Britain, South Korea, The Republic of Turkey), which have the most advanced experience in this field, is of particular importance in understanding the essence and content of providing scientific and information-analytical activities of the parliament. The analysis of the practice of scientific services of foreign parliaments shows that their status, content, object and subject of study and research methods are somewhat different. An important role in their activities is played by the scientific examination of decisions adopted by the Parliament and draft laws prepared, as well as the scientific justification for conducting parliamentary control. The method of comparative analysis given in this article will cover the history of the existence of Parliamentary Research Services and will serve to improve the provision of scientific and information-analytical activities of the chambers of the Oliy Majlis. "

Current trends in organizational and legal and innovative support of parliamentary control in Ukraine

This article outlines main trends in domestic parliamentary practice that do not strengthen the institutional capacity of the Verkhovna Rada in the context of improving the organizational and legal mechanism of parliamentary control. Such tendencies are emphasized in comparison with European values and standards of e-democracy.

ДАВЛАТ БЮДЖЕТИ УСТИДАН ПАРЛАМЕНТ НАЗОРАТИ МОҲИЯТИ: ИЛМИЙ-НАЗАРИЙ ТАҲЛИЛ

This article describes the essence, significance and peculiarities of the institution of parliamentary control in the system of separation of powers. The main direction of parliamentary control is the control over the state budget - a special approach to controlling the expenditure of budget funds, which form the financial basis of the country. Control over the state budget is to ensure socio-economic development, consideration of the State Budget, which is the main financial document, its adoption and control over its implementation. The author describes from his point of view the parliamentary control over the execution of the state budget as the main direction of parliamentary activity, aimed at ensuring the strict observance of budget discipline in the formation and effective use of the state budget by the parliament and its bodies. The article considers the control functions of the Oliy Majlis of the Republic of Uzbekistan on the basis of the Constitution and laws of the Republic of Uzbekistan: аdoption of the State Budget on the proposal of the Cabinet of Ministers and control over its execution, consideration of reports of the Cabinet of Ministers on the results of execution of the state budget by the Legislative Chamber, adoption of relevant decisions, consideration of the report of the Accounts Chamber. The main directions of parliamentary financial control over the state budget are analyzed through the legislative system of the Republic of Uzbekistan. The author puts forward scientific and theoretical and practical ideas for improving the legislation in the field of parliamentary financial control over the state budget.

Constitutional and Legal Foundations of Parliamentary Control in the Republic of South Ossetia

Parliamentary control is recognized as the most effective form of influence on government bodies (primarily executive bodies) in the implementation of its main functions by the legislative body. Parliamentary control is of great importance to ensure a balance between the legislative and executive branches of government, as it is one of the main elements of the system of checks and balances. Parliamentary control in the Republic of South Ossetia has its own characteristics and specific features, even taking into account the desire of the South Ossetia legislator to converge national and Russian legislation. The author provides a characteristic of the forms of parliamentary control and mechanisms for the implementation of these forms, based on the legal framework and established practice. A comparative legal analysis of certain forms of parliamentary control with similar ones in the Russian Federation and a number of other foreign countries has been carried out. It is concluded that the absence of a system-forming act in the field of parliamentary control for the highest representative and only legislative body of the Republic of South Ossetia is not an obstacle to the active implementation of its control functions.

Parliamentary activity and the General Data Protection Regulation (gdpr)

Abstract In light of the recent cjeu case C-272/19 of 9 July 2020 (vq v. Land Hessen), debates commenced within various European Parliaments regarding the material scope of application of the General Data Protection Regulation (gdpr) to data processing in parliamentary core areas. This case study focuses on Greece, and aims at highlighting the points of intersection and tension between parliamentary action – in particular the institution of parliamentary control – and the protection of personal data, as they emerge from the practice of the Hellenic Data Protection Authority (“hdpa”) and the Hellenic Parliament. It further makes proposals to end the current fragmentation in the implementation of data protection across the European Parliaments and to ensure consistent and homogenous application of the data protection rules in relation to core parliamentary activities throughout the European Union.

Creating a Common Law of Slavery for England and its New World Empire

The current historical consensus is that English common law was somewhat confused, but that coerced servitude was legal in England before 1772, and certainly in its empire, where English law on slavery did not reach, because it was “beyond the line” of English justice. The common law is characterized by an effort to see continuity and consistency, and historians (despite our natural desire to track change) often look for those patterns too. Such efforts to provide a consistent overview of an England that was free and colonies that created slavery on their own—have obscured the vibrant struggle over slavery within the English judicial system—the common law—over more than a century. Not only did the common law on slavery change profoundly during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries: the common law became an instrument of crown policy. It did so within a federal empire, wherein colonial legal norms had to adhere, in crucial ways, to that common law. English high court judges thus provided the legal foundation for an imperial common law of slavery that allowed people to be deemed absolute property. That definition of people as property was closely connected to absolutism, both in theory and practice. In theory the absolute power of kings over subjects was connected to that of masters over slaves. In practice, the crown's use of the courts to create laws without parliamentary consent (to bypass parliament) also increased crown revenue and thus their independence from parliamentary control. These powerful legal mechanisms made it possible to “recover” enslaved people as assets for debts, a legal definition that was essential for a market in people to function sucessfully. This history reveals the absolutist character of early capitalism, and the extent to which the character of capitalist development depends on the legal rules that define markets and justice.

Principles and procedure for forming temporary investigation commissions of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine

Realization an investigation by temporary investigative commissions of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine is one of the leading forms of parliamentary control in Ukraine. Nevertheless, their legal framework still needs to be improved, and parliamentary investigations are relatively infrequent with insufficient efficiency. In this regard, there is a need to study the current legal framework for the formation of temporary investigative commissions.
 The purpose of the work is an in-depth analysis of the principles and procedure for forming temporary investigative commissions of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, determination their essence and features, as well as substantiation the priority directions for improving the constitutional and legal framework of their organization and activities.
 Methods. To solve the problems of the research, a number of methods of scientific knowledge were used, including formal-legal method, which determined the current state and problems of legal regulation of the formation of temporary investigative commissions. System-structural method – the unity and interrelation of the procedure of formation and termination of powers of temporary investigative commissions, staffing of their personnel are characterized; logical-semantic method – the essence of the grounds for the formation of temporary investigative commissions is revealed.
 Results. It is established that the formation of temporary investigative commissions for investigation certain «issues of public interest» allows to take into account the variability of such public interest and the objective impossibility of its exhaustive legal definition. However, this does not preclude the abuse of the right to form temporary investigative commissions in the absence of established parliamentary practice, traditions and political culture. The formation of the staff of the temporary investigative commissions based on proportional representation of each parliamentary faction (group) provides a majority in the temporary investigative commissions to the parliamentary coalition, which may be disinterested in conducting a thorough parliamentary investigation.
 Conclusions. It is substantiated that the development of constitutional and legal bases for the formation of temporary investigative commissions of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine should include expansion of constitutional guarantees for the formation of temporary investigative commissions and clarification of issues that cannot be the subject of parliamentary investigation. Other measures should be bringing the rules of procedure of the parliament in line with the relevant Law of Ukraine, taking into account the modern parliamentary practice of Ukraine and the experience of democratic countries, as well as application of disciplinary measures to members of the temporary investigative commission in case it fails to submit a report. It is also advisable prohibition of conducting parliamentary investigations into issues pending before the court, guaranteeing the opposition at least half of the seats in the temporary investigative commission, as well as legislative establishment of its minimum and maximum quantitative composition. The following measures should be establishing requirements for the professionalism and competence of the members of the temporary investigative commission and prohibition of combining senior positions in temporary commissions and committees of parliament.

Parliamentary control in the spheres of spirituality and culture: security aspec

This article examines the issue of the effectiveness and quality of the implementation of parliamentary control in the spheres of spirituality and culture, as an aspect of ensuring national security in the modern conditions of the hybrid aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine. It is noted that parliamentary control in Ukraine is extremely insufficient and rather contradictory, which does not yet allow to talk about the stability of parliamentary control as such, about its proper scientific understanding and legal consolidation in modern conditions, especially in the context of the hybrid aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine. It was stated that social changes caused by globalization processes affect the state of ensuring national security in such spheres as culture and spirituality. Currently, this issue has not been studied enough, and therefore needs further development. It was noted that in the field of culture, certain positive changes in the implementation of state (parliamentary) control have been achieved in recent years. However, in the sphere of spirituality (spiritual culture) and in the related religious sphere, as a result of the ideological sabotage and special informational operations carried out by the Russian Federation, a spiritual crisis has actually been generated in Ukraine, the resolution of which is an urgent task of the state power. Parliamentary control in these areas, which should be carried out through the prism of national security, is virtually absent. A number of proposals have been worked out, which are advisable to be introduced into the process of exercising parliamentary control over the aforementioned spheres.

Diversification of Legislation Editing Open Software (LEOS) Using Software Agents—Transforming Parliamentary Control of the Hellenic Parliament into Big Open Legal Data

The accessibility and reuse of legal data is paramount for promoting transparency, accountability and, ultimately, trust towards governance institutions. The aggregation of structured and semi-structured legal data inevitably leads to the big data realm and a series of challenges for the generation, handling, and analysis of large datasets. When it comes to data generation, LEOS represents a legal informatics tool that is maturing quickly. Now in its third release, it effectively supports the drafting of legal documents using Akoma Ntoso compatible schemes. However, the tool, originally developed for cooperative legislative drafting, can be repurposed to draft parliamentary control documents. This is achieved through the use of actor-oriented software components, referred to as software agents, which enable system interoperability by interlinking the text editing system with parliamentary control datasets. A validated corpus of written questions from the Hellenic Parliament is used to evaluate the feasibility of the endeavour, and the feasibility of using it as an authoring tool for written parliamentary questions and generation of standardised, open, legislative data. Systemic integration not only proves the tool’s versatility, but also opens up new grounds in interoperability between formerly unrelated legal systems and data sources.

Una lectura constitucionalmente adecuada de los nueve indultos concedidos a los condenados en el juicio del procés

This work addresses a formal and material legal analysis about the requirements of legality to the nine pardons granted by the Government. It delineates the aspects of parliamentary control and political responsibility in which the Government is pressured when granting pardons to those susceptible to judicial control in the face of eventual remedies. The report unfavourable to the granting of pardons by the Second Chamber of the Supreme Court and the Supreme Prosecutor’s Office is analysed in detail and concludes that the pardons fulfil the requirements of legality.

IMPROVEMENT OF MECHANISMS FOR IMPLEMENTING THE RESULTS OF PARLIAMENTARY CONTROL

The main objective of the study, the results of which is presented in the article, is an analysis of the content and essence of parliamentary control, which is a prerequisite for improving mechanisms for its implementation. The author has shown that the concept of parliamentarism means the presence of a division of state power to the legislative, executive and judicial, and therefore means independence and simultaneous interconnection of all branches of power. Such interconnectivity makes it possible to restrain branch branches due to mutual influence, pressure and control. The article determines that the state policy develops in a way that makes it possible to synchronously and in this case it is symmetrically involved in various branches of power to its formation, implementation and adjustment, depending on manifestations of legal reality, socio-economic reality and public-political processes in the state. The author revealed that, in democratic countries, the Parliament acts as a state policy that is responsible for state policy: taking on the legislative level of basic principles, the principles and mechanisms for implementing the state policy that rely on all the basis of all without exception social relations with the basis of public relations with the legislative level. its realization. Parliamentary control covers spheres much wider than a purely process of realization by the state executive authorities of their own powers. It is about the possibility of introducing separate forms of parliamentary control as an element of political legal personality, when the appointment of parliament officials that is part of its competence entails direct responsibility of such persons in the form of possible release due to the unsatisfactory results of the implementation of its powers or violations of legislation in the process of their the realization. In general, it can be noted that the unique combination of legislative and control functions in a representative body of state power increases the effectiveness of state regulation as a whole, since the adoption of the law means only the implementation of the establishment function by the state, and already its direct realization and enforcement of state power bodies - will provide the dynamics of the process of regulating public relationship. Instead, such an enforcement requires control not so much by the completion of the state authorities of its powers, but for the correctness of understanding the essence of the norms that are determined by the mechanisms of state regulation in the field of environmental activity.Key words: parliamentary control, execution of parliamentary control, lawmaking, state policy, central executive authorities.

Innovative Tools for Increasing the Openness and Transparency of Public-Private Partnership Projects

Aim. The presented study aims to identify the most effective tools for increasing the openness and transparency of public-private partnership projects for the purpose of developing recommendations to improve the efficiency of public-private partnership project management in the Russian Federation. Tasks. The authors analyze the international experience of ensuring the accountability of public-private partnership projects and using modern tools to improve the collection, disclosure, and use of data and information on public-private partnerships of international organizations; identify the most effective models for assessing the financial risks of public-private partnerships; determine directions for improving the efficiency of public-private partnership project management in the Russian Federation.Methods. This study uses general scientific methods, such as analysis, generalization, and classification. Analysis of foreign practices and tools is used to identify major tools and directions for increasing the openness and transparency of public-private partnership projects in Russia. Results. When examining international experience, the authors emphasize international approaches to risk management in public-private partnership projects, consider conditional budget obligations, which are assumed by public partners in public-private partnership projects along with direct obligations, the volumes and terms of payments for which are probabilistic and scenario-based. International principles and standards in the field of public-private partnerships of various organizations of the UN system, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), and the World Bank Group are examined and analyzed. The analysis of innovative tools for improving the collection, disclosure, and use of data and information on public-private partnerships of international organizations (UN, IMF, OECD, World Bank Group) makes it obvious that special attention is paid to the openness of public-private partnership projects and to the public awareness of its relative costs, benefits, and risks in particular. International organizations believe that governments should develop and include in the implementation of public-private partnerships a consultation process commensurate with the scale of the project, taking into account the common public interests and opinions of stakeholders. This process should have a broad basis, facilitate dialogue, rely on public access to information and the needs of users. Conclusions. The relevance of developing effective tools for ensuring the openness (transparency) and accountability of public-private partnership projects is apparent. In this context, transparency implies not only the openness of information, but also adequate opportunities for parliamentary control and public consultations. Systems should be established at all levels of government to ensure regular collection of relevant data and institutional responsibility for their analysis, dissemination, and examination. Such data should be disclosed to the public in an accessible form and in a timely manner. This ensures the government's confidence in public finance management and increases the confidence of businesses and the population in the market. Financial transparency improves the efficiency of financial decisions and holds governments accountable for their financial performance and for the management and use of public resources.

Civil supervision and control over special services’ activities

The article addresses issues related to the civil system of democratic supervision and control over special services in Poland since the political transformation. The system is based on the supervision of the executive authority, which also sets the directions of activities, Parliamentary control – mainly with the help of the Committee for Special Services, judiciary supervision assessing their actions in terms of possible abuse of powers or failure to fulfill their obligations. The functionality of some legal solutions in the field of supervision and control over the services was assessed. The dominant role of the Prime Minister in exercising supervision over the special services was pointed out.

КОНТРОЛЬНАЯ ФУНКЦИЯ ПАРЛАМЕНТА И ПРИНЦИП РАЗДЕЛЕНИЯ ВЛАСТЕЙ

The article analyzes using the normative and systematic methods, as well as analysis and synthesis, the content of the statements of the Constitution of the Kyrgyz Republic, the Law of the Kyrgyz Republic «On Regulations of the Jogorku Kenesh of the Kyrgyz Republic», decisions of the Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court of the Kyrgyz Republic and the works of legal scholars. The article is devoted to the study of the postulate that the principle of division of powers has a deep theoretical basis, which has been developed since existence of institution of state and is aimed at identifying clear boundaries of authority between individual branches of government in order to build their structure so that they serve society. The author came to the conclusion that parliamentary control is in direct connection with the principle of division of powers, in this system it serves and acts as element of mutual control of branches of government. The judiciary today also unequivocally determines inadmissibility of overarching function, the priority role of legislative branch over other parts of government. Parliamentary control is in direct connection with the principle of division of powers, in this system it serves and acts as an element of mutual control of branches of government. According to the author, presence of such control in practice constantly leads to idea of the priority role of legislative branch, which leads to weakening of principle of division of powers. However, it should be noted the implementation of control powers is not aimed at determining the priority of legislative branch in system of division of powers; parliamentary control only organizationally implements of existing powers of parliament.

Control as a means of safeguarding nation-wide interests

The article is concerned with solving the problem of safeguarding nation-wide interests by improving the control activities of thestate.It is noted that the coordination of group, individual and public interests is the designation of the state and an essential elementof its activities. The nation-wide interest is understood by the author as the relationship between the need to satisfy the demands of societyand the ability to satisfy them through the multilateral activities of the state.It is emphasized that primarily the nation-wide interest is formed and formulated in the Constitution of Ukraine, as well as in thelegislation in force derivative from it, through the law-making activities of the Ukrainian Parliament and the rule-making activities ofthe Ukrainian Government. Therefore, the realization of the provisions of the Constitution of Ukraine and law enforcement activitiesof public authorities ensure the realization of nation-wide interests.An emphasis is placed on the need to improve the law-making process towards democratization, which will help identify andtake into account the interests of society, of its various social strata and groups in the laws.
 It is emphasized that the dialectic of priority of interests manifests itself in the fact that through the formation and realization ofprivate and collective interests the development of nation-wide interest is achieved and the strengthening of the nation-wide interestbecomes the basis for the development of personal, private and collective interests.Attention is given to the issues of improving parliamentary control, the activities of the prosecution service, state control ofgovernment bodies.In institutional terms, the exercise of control power can be carried out through a special state body – the State Control Committeeof Ukraine. This body should consist of two complementary subsystems: a theoretical and methodological one and a functional one.The theoretical and methodological center of the State Control Committee should provide theoretical and methodological justificationof forms, methods, ways and techniques of state control, and the functional center should provide direct state control practice throughits structural units all over the country.The principles of organization and activities of such a control institution are proposed. The Constitution of Ukraine and a speciallaw should be its legal basis, and its independence should be ensured by elective staffing, collegiality, political neutrality, publicity andtransparency of its activities, adequate material support.Control, based on the principle of a separate independent branch of government, is able to safeguard any nation-wide interests asa separate means, and this will contribute to the rule of law and order in our society.

Parliamentary Control of Delegated Legislation

Parliamentary Control of Delegated Legislation

At the crossroads of a frozen conflict: Political oversight of the Council’s administrative budget by the European Parliament

The European Parliament’s practice has turned budget discharge into a fully-fledged democratic accountability mechanism to oversee the use of public funds by EU institutions, agencies, and bodies on an annual basis. The Council is firmly opposed to submitting its budget management to parliamentary control, on the grounds of a lack of explicit legal basis vesting such power in the Parliament, which, in turn, has refused to grant budget discharge to the Council since 2011. This protracted conflict is rooted in the rigid and path-dependent EU legal framework of budget management and control. After considering the downsides of litigation and an interinstitutional agreement, the article proceeds to propose legal reform as a suitable option, not only to defuse institutional conflict, but also to restore consistency and align budget control with the values of transparency and accountability that have gained traction in other areas of the EU legal order.