Balgarianovinite.com Progressive Bulgaria has tabled changes to Parliament’s rules that would curb oversight of ministers and restrict MPs’ debate, Vazrazhdane said in a press release on Tuesday.
Vazrazhdane said the proposed amendments to the Rules of Organization and Procedure of the National Assembly violate the principles of parliamentary democracy. The party argued that the changes would weaken transparency in government, shorten key parliamentary deadlines and reduce the opposition’s ability to scrutinize legislation and appointments.
One of Vazrazhdane’s main objections concerns parliamentary control. The party said the proposals remove MPs’ ability to request information, documents and data from state and local authorities about the public liabilities of state-owned and municipal companies. They would also scrap the guaranteed 14-day deadline for replies to MPs and remove control over cases in which members of the Council of Ministers fail to answer parliamentary questions, Vazrazhdane said.
The party also criticized the proposed shortening of minimum deadlines in Parliament. It said this would entrench what it called GERB and Movemwnt for Rights and Freedoms (MRF)’s flawed practice of examining bills and draft resolutions in committees and in the plenary chamber at very short notice, without enough time for opinions or stakeholder participation.
Vazrazhdane said the same approach is being applied to procedures for electing regulatory and supervisory bodies. The final stage in these procedures would be reduced from seven to three days, which, the party argued, would allow the rapid election of preferred candidates without adequate time for reaction by MPs or the public.
Another proposed change concerns bills on the same subject tabled by different parliamentary groups. Vazrazhdane said such bills may no longer have to be considered together if the committee majority so decides. Since Progressive Bulgaria has a majority in all committees, this would allow bills tabled by the opposition to be shelved, the party said.
Vazrazhdane also objected to the proposed reduction of speaking time in the plenary chamber. The party said speaking time rules that had applied in the last ten national assemblies would be cut by half. Replies would be reduced from two minutes to one, procedural motions from two minutes to one, counter-replies from three minutes to two, and speeches on second reading from five minutes to three, limited to one provision only. The party said this would restrict MPs’ constitutional right to speak and take part in Parliament’s legislative work. It also objected to a proposal banning a reply expressing disagreement with a speaker from the same parliamentary group.
The press release also criticized proposed changes to the powers of the National Assembly Chair. Vazrazhdane said the chair would be able to add extraordinary items to Parliament’s agenda without a preliminary Council of Chairs meeting, as GERB did in the 49th National Assembly when it added five or six extraordinary items on Fridays. The party also said the chair’s obligation to hold monthly coordination meetings with committee chairs would be removed, showing disrespect for the opposition.
Vazrazhdane said the proposed amendments would also remove the current ban on the National Assembly Chair both speaking and chairing the debate and vote on the same agenda item. The party argued that this rule had so far helped guarantee impartiality in conducting plenary sittings. Vazrazhdane Says Progressive Bulgaria Seeks to Curb Parliamentary Oversight 2026 THE NEWS FROM BULGARIA – NEWS AGENCY 2009-2025 2026-05-19 08:36:00 Latest news World news Country news Most important news latest news most important latest of the day Justice Petar Nizamov Feathers Petar Nizamov- Feathers Justice bg iustitia.bg iustitia iusticia usticia investigation Burgas Bulgaria news news of the last hour news of the day news of today Bulgaria news The news from Bulgaria blitz news top news most important most commented latest news Boyko Borisov news weather coronavirus news news weather facebook youtube facebook instagram news today news of the last minutes news today today news news bg news leading news hot news bg news site for news all news news bg news of the last hour latest latest news bg news of today news today news today news of the last hour latest news today news bg news news 24 hours news vesti bg novini news world bird bg bivol bg bivol trud bg novini latest news today novinite bg news hello bulgaria political party coat of arms delyan peevski scandalous Bulgarian National Television Free Europe Television scandal exclusive live tv live right now tv tv online tv program bg live now tv news online tv online live court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas district court Burgas appellate court Burgas prosecutor Burgas prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev Prosecutor Geshev Tsatsarov Ministry of Internal Affairs Burgas ODMR Burgas ODPR Burgas police Burgas district police Burgas prosecutor Tsatsarov SGS cases Varna court chairman of the SGS court decisions on civil cases decisions on cases Plovdiv court decision of the court decisions cases Varna court criminal cases district district court decisions work in the court SGS chairman of the SGS judges Sofia court post judges Plovdiv court Plovdiv judges Plovdiv Supreme Court Inspectorate Supreme Court Supreme Judicial Council lawyer lawyer criminal cases lawyer civil cases lawyer marriage cases lawyer administrative criminal law criminal process civil law civil process administrative law constitutional law