Commission Report 2002 (Romania)

The parliament

Parliament has demonstrated a capacity to process a considerable amount of legislation, although its ability to provide effective scrutiny has proved limited.

In 2001, the number of laws adopted by Parliament showed a marked increase over previous years, which were characterised by legislative blockages. This increase is due to a combination of revised parliamentary procedures and the strong position of the ruling party in both houses. This trend continued in 2002.

The combination of an increased volume of legislation, tighter deadlines and limited resources have had a negative impact on Parliament`s ability to effectively scrutinise legislation. Given this situation, specific concerns exist relating to the transposition of the acquis where procedural deadlines are particularly short. Legislation through ordinances (see below under the executive) also serves to reduce the importance of Parliament in the legislative process.

While overall levels of staffing are adequate, there is a shortage of research staff with legal expertise to assist parliamentarians. The numbers of support staff for parliamentary parties are also low. These problems are magnified by the lack of a career development policy or training policy for existing staff.

With regard to transparency, information on the legislative process is widely available and most draft laws are published on the Internet. It remains difficult to follow the process of amending and adopting laws in real time - which limits the opportunities for external input into a key stage of the legislative process. The public cannot attend meetings of the specialised committees without their prior consent.

In June 2002, Parliament established a Committee to draft proposals for constitutional reform. These are to include reforms necessary for EU accession and improvements in the functioning of state institutions.