The Speaker of The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Olexandr Moroz had a meeting with Bruce George, the President of the International Association for Business and Parliament, deputy of the House of Commons Chamber of the Parliament of Great Britain.
At the beginning of the meeting the Speaker of The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine expressed gratitude for assistance in the issue concerning holding the 16th Annual Session of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly in Kyiv. "In spite of the situation in Ukraine, this is a good sign for the public that we do advance towards democracy," stated O. Moroz. He expressed expectations that activity of the Assembly will receive extensive publicity in the society. According to his words, the issues that will be discussed at the Assembly, in particular those concerning the security system in the area, concern European community.
Today in his speech at the opening of the plenary session of the Assembly, The Speaker of The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine intends to suggest considering the issue of the conditions and problems of the parliamentarism development at one of the sessions of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly.
He expects Mr George to assist in submitting this issue to the Assembly.
In his turn B. George dwelled on his visit to Ukraine as an observer on the parliamentary election, pointing out that the last election to The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine completely met the requirements of international democratic standards. He is confident that next election, "whenever it is held", will also correspond to the standards. George also inquired when the observers will receive the invitations for the election, in case it is held.
O. Moroz informed, in his turn, of the absence of ample legal reasons for the early election, pointing out that the President´s decrees violate the Constitution and legislation. He also reminded of the unsettled issue concerning the so-called nullification of the electoral roll due to the delay in the work of the Central Election Commission caused by the President´s Institute. According to his words, as soon as this issue is settled, The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine will send the invitations for the election observers to the European countries.
The Speaker of The Verkhovna Rada expressed his concern over the menace of annihilation of the judicial system in Ukraine. If this election is held, it should be "juridical", because a great deal depends on the rate of independence in the work of court at different levels.
B George suggested starting the activity of the International Association for Business and Parliament in Ukraine, in the direction of the parliamentarism development. He emphasized that the Ukrainian party will decide on the activity orientation. O. Moroz supported this idea, saying that "this is a good pursuit worth being implemented in Ukraine". According to his words, such joint actions promote the adaptation of national legislation to the European.
Wide range of issues concerning the structure and practice of work of the parliaments in European countries was discussed at the meeting. In particular, Mr George suggested holding the seminar on the legal aspects of work of the parliament of two chambers. He dwelled on the efficiency of the Parliament of two chambers in Great Britain, emphasizing that though this tradition was effective, nowadays the issue of reforming the Upper Chamber by the appointing its members by election is being discussed.
O. Moroz commented on the expedience of holding such seminar with the participation of the wide range of experts at the beginning of September this year. However, he is confident of inexpediency of introduction the parliament of two chambers in Ukraine, which is a unitary state.