Majorca Daily Bulletin reporterPalma29/03/2016 00:00
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The Balearic parliament has so much business to attend to that it is having to hold sessions in the mornings and in the afternoons, something which hasn't typically occurred in the past. At present, there are 2,999 motions, proposals and other measures that are waiting to be dealt with and given parliamentary closure, and these come on the back of well over 3,000 items of business that the current legislature has already dealt with.

Some of this is relatively minor, such as responding to requests for documentation and information. But there is plenty which is more important - parliamentary hearings regarding the appointment of senior officials to government posts, motions raised by the opposition parties and actual legislation.

Of laws that the government has drafted for approval, five were agreed in the final six months of last year. There are three that are presently being processed through parliament, while one - the law on the sustainable tourism tax - was approved last week. In addition to government legislation, there are the legislative proposals that are emanating from other parties.

This has given rise to a form of double legislation. This is a novelty for this parliament in that parties not in the government have the ability to bring legislative initiatives before the house. This had not been the case with the Partido Popular governments or indeed the previous coalition governments led by PSOE (as is the case with the current government).

Government spokesperson Marc Pons says that this has come about because of an appreciation of the role of parliament. "This does not happen with governments with an absolute majority. Bauzá (the previous president and one with a clear majority) did not respect parliament, ruled by decree and imposed his times (on legislative proceedings)."