22 September 2009, 18:32
PLENARY MEETINGS OF THE FIFTH SESSION OF THE VERKHOVNA RADA OF UKRAINE OF THE SIXTH CONVOCATION WERE HELD ON TUESDAY, 22 SEPTEMBER
In the beginning of the morning meeting, the People´s Deputies sent their greetings to the members of the delegation of the European Association of the Former European Parliament Members present at the meeting.
The representatives of the Deputy Factions presented their announcements, motions and appeals.
Volodymyr Lytvyn, Chairman of The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, suggested that the People´s Deputies voted for the prolongation of the afternoon plenary meeting until all the issues of the agenda were scrutinized. The proposal was not endorsed.
The Chairman stated that the participants of the yesterday´s Conciliative Council discussed a sensitive matter concerning increase of the social standards.
The participants of the Conciliative Council recommended adopting a resolution, pursuant to which the People´s Deputies had to vote for the said Bills personally at the session hall, not by the cards. The Chairman read out the Draft Resolution concerning alteration of the mode of voting for the Bills on the increase of social standards. Pursuant to the Draft Resolution, the People´s Deputies had to vote for all the Bills by means of raising their hand. The Returning Boards was to count the votes and inform The Verkhovna Rada about the results of the voting for every Bill.
The Parliament members supplemented the agenda with four Bills.
The People´s Deputies passed the Resolution on the alternation of the mode of voting for the said Bills by 240 votes and started to scrutinize the legislative documents. The authors of the Bills reported on the essence of the documents.
Oleh Liashko, Deputy Chairman of the Committee on Budget, stated that the Committee believed it was untimely to scrutinize the Bill by O.Zarubinsky, as it had been forwarded to the Ministry of Finance to obtain an expert conclusion.
Volodymyr Matviychuk, Vice-Minister of Finance, stated that the Government had calculated the expenditures of the Bills in 2010, which amounted to UAH 70-500 billion in comparison with the expenditures of year 2009 under the State Budget revenue in the amount of UAH 290 billion. Extra expenditures due to all of the Bills amounted to UAH 40-470 billion.
The Vice-Minister of Finance addressed the People´s Deputies with a request to present the settlements of the extra expenditures and demonstrate the sources of financing the extra expenditures.
The representatives of the Deputies Factions and the People´s Deputies discussed the Bill. A number of representatives of the parliamentary majority upheld the Bills appertaining to the increase of the social standards. The representatives of the BYuT Faction objected to the suggested rates of the social standards, as they "failed to be calculated, approved and substantiated".
They upheld the proposal of the Government concerning increase of the social standards as envisaged by the Bill on the State Budget of Ukraine for 2010.
The People´s Deputies failed to uphold the Chairman´s proposal concerning prolongation of the morning meeting until the resolution was adopted.
V.Lytvyn stated that the voting would be held at 4 p.m. under the established procedure, and declared the morning plenary meeting adjourned.
In the beginning of the afternoon plenary meeting, the Party of Regions and the Communist Party of Ukraine Factions requested to announce a recess to hold the Conciliative Council.
The Chairman announced a recess. After the recess, V.Lytvyn informed about the results of the Conciliative Council. The participants of the Council scrutinized a number of motions concerning voting on the above-mentioned issues. Neither proposal was upheld.
V.Lytvyn announced his intention to put the proposals to the vote, as the Conciliative Council failed to reach an agreement.
The People´s Deputies failed to uphold the first proposal concerning cancellation of the Resolution "On the Alteration of the Mode of Voting for the Bills on the Increase of the State Social Standards" (207 votes).
The People´s Deputies also failed to uphold the second proposal, pursuant to which, adoption of the resolution concerning the Bills on the increase of the State social standards were postponed for Thursday, 24 September (19 votes).
Then the representatives of the Party of Regions blocked the lectern and the presidium. Viktor Yanukovych, leader of the Party of Regions Faction, called on the People´s Deputies with a request to vote for all the Bills under the traditional procedure, i.e. by means of cards.
Ivan Kyrylenko, leader of the BYuT Faction, stated that the Faction upheld the voting for the Bills on the increase of the social standards.
The Chairman put to the vote the issues concerning scrutiny of the first and the second proposals. The voting failed.
Volodymyr Lytvyn declared the meeting adjourned.