President William Lai (賴清德) on Tuesday approved the Cabinet's request to return a set of contentious legislative reform bills to the legislature, which could hold a final vote on Tuesday next week at the earliest.
The changes to the Act Governing the Legislative Yuan’s Power (立法院職權行使法) and the Criminal Code were passed by opposition lawmakers voting in the majority on May 28.
The Executive Yuan on Thursday last week formally decided to return the legislation to lawmakers for reconsideration pending approval from the president, a power afforded to it under the Additional Articles of the Constitution.
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
Lai at 11am on Tuesday sent the approved proposal back to the Cabinet, while the Presidential Office secretary-general notified the Legislative Yuan of the decision, office spokesperson Kuo Ya-hui (郭雅慧) said.
The president carefully considered the Cabinet’s reasoning and decided to approve its constitutionally afforded right to return the legislation, Kuo said.
He hopes all parties will carefully scrutinize the content of the bills and reach a consensus that is legal, constitutional and prioritizes national interests, Kuo added.
Article 3-2 of the Additional Articles of the Constitution stipulates that if the Executive Yuan finds a bill passed by the Legislative Yuan difficult to execute, it can within 10 days of receiving it request the legislature to reconsider the bill, provided it has the president’s approval.
The legislature is required to convene at most seven days after receiving the request and vote on whether to uphold the passage of the bill within 15 days.
More than half of all sitting legislators — or a minimum of 57 votes in the current legislature — must vote yes to uphold the bill.
If the legislature fails to reach a decision within this period, it would become invalid.
The soonest the legislature could reach a conclusion is on Tuesday next week.
Additional reporting by CNA
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