ON WEDNESDAY, 19 MARCH, THE VERKHOVNA RADA OF UKRAINE OF THE SIXTH CONVOCATION CONTINUED ITS PLENARY WORK
In the beginning of the plenary meeting the People´s Deputies spoke with reports, appeals and motions.
The attendants of the session honoured the memory of Ihor Kinal, Deputy Platoon Commander, Senior Lieutenant, who perished in Kosovo, with a minute of silence.
Then the People´s Deputies discussed two Bills on the National Referendum. The People´s Deputy Olexandr Lavrynovych reported on the first Bill. He stated that the Bill defines legal principles, organization and procedure of holding national referendum.
The reporter stated that the said Bill "is one of the basic Laws for implementing Ukrainian Constitution".
The People´s Deputy Yuriy Kliuchkovski presented the alternative Bill. He reported on the basic regulations of the Bill concerning the status of the referendum, basic requirements, and legal consequences of holding of a referendum.
Both Bills were rejected by the results of the voting.
Then the Bills were considered under the shortened procedure. The People´s Deputy Valentyn Matveyev reported on the Bill on Amendments to several Legislative Acts of Ukraine (re Reference of the Issue concerning Prohibition of Political Parties´ Activity to the Subject Jurisdiction of the High Administrative Court of Ukraine).
However, the Bill was rejected.
The People´s Deputies considered the Bill on Amendments to the Criminal and Criminal Procedural Codes of Ukraine (re Types of Punishment), which regards death penalty as a supreme penalty for grave crimes, and intentional murders under the aggravating circumstances.
The reporter stated that abolishment of death penalty was Ukraine´s commitments by its accession to the Council of Europe.
The Verkhovna Rada rejected the Bill on Amendments to the Criminal and Criminal Procedural Codes of Ukraine (re Types of Punishment).
Then the People´s Deputy Petro Tsybenko reported on the Bill on Amendments to several Laws of Ukraine (re Payroll Accounting for Calculation of Pension).
The Bill was rejected by the results of the voting.
At the end of the morning plenary meeting the People´s Deputies scrutinized three Bills on amendments to the Law of Ukraine "On Individual Income Tax" (re Non-Taxation of the Gratis-Allotted Coal).
The said Bill specifies the groups of persons who are granted benefits concerning free allotment of coal for everyday necessities.
The Verkhovna Rada adopted the Bill on Amendments to the Law of Ukraine "On Individual Income Tax" (re Non-Taxation of the Gratis-Allotted Coal) by 227 votes.
Then the plenary meeting was closed.