That week in Parliament

A lot was packed into the first term of the Sixth Parliament. New Members were registered, sworn-in and received training. In addition, the legislature elected new leadership, had a second State of the Nation Address, set up structures, and assigned...

There were 39 unfinished bills when the Fifth Parliament ended. According to National Assembly Rule 333 (2), these bills lapsed automatically when Parliament was dissolved on 7 May 2019 Find a list of lapsed bills...

After several intense weeks, there is a slight lull in the parliamentary agenda for the coming week. Most of the significant business is in the main chambers while the committee corridor takes a backseat. The programme has a distinct end of term feel...

It’s another week where Parliament’s schedule is dominated by Budget Vote Debates. These debates happen in the mini-plenary sittings of the National Assembly and are headlined by Ministers, their deputies, party leaders and senior MPs. This period is...

The Week Ahead: Budget Vote Debates Parliament will largely be consumed by Budget Vote debates this week. These debates provide an opportunity for Parliament to discuss and then formally adopt the budgets of government departments and entities. The...

The Sixth Parliament is now fully in swing! Chairpersons have been elected and Members are furiously busy scrutinizing performance plans and budgets. This would be a useful time to familiarize yourself  with some parliamentary parlance! We’ve all...

  Portfolio Committees will  begin their work this week. Committees are an important venue for parliamentary activities. It is the site where most of the legislature's business is organised.  It is typically the first place where legislative proposals...

The Week Ahead: SONA Debates The Sixth Parliament is slowing kicking into gear with four plenary sittings scheduled this week. The main events will be the joint debate on the State of the Nation Address on Tuesday  as well as the President’s reply...

While most of the public attention is directed at the main chambers, MPs spend most of their times in Committees. Committees are the site where the real, substantive work (law-making, oversight and budget allocation) happens. Committees have more time...

Chairpersons play a dominant role in organising the administrative affairs of a Committee and control its budget. In addition, he/she supervises the writing of the Committee's reports to the House (ensuring that the text presented in the House is the...