site.btaUPDATED Parliament Chair: 49th National Assembly Has Managed to Do More Than Previous Five Did Altogether

This National Assembly, for its short parliamentary life of a little more than half a year, managed to do more than the 44th to 49th parliaments, Parliament Chair Rosen Zhelyazkov told the Bulgarian National Television on Friday evening.

Not only in terms of volume of acts, but also in terms of volume of reforms and policies that passed through the plenary and which continue to be in the public's attention as an expectation, and we have a commitment with the necessary majority to support them, Zhelyazkov added.

For GERB participation in the government is an alternative, regardless of the heavy competition within this majority (Continue the Change - Democratic Bulgaria and GERB-UDF), Zhelyazkov said. According to him, the majority is now beyond the mechanical sum of the deputies from Continue the Change - Democratic Bulgaria and GERB-UDF and includes the Movement for Rights and Freedoms. Whatever criticism the majority endures, the problems are being solved in an optimal - not the best, but not the worst - way, Zhelyazkov added.

According to him, the temporary commission of inquiry formed on Friday, which should deal with the cases of violence at the protest against the leadership of the Bulgarian Football Union on November 16, will not deal with Bulgarian football. It will deal with guaranteeing the rights of citizens to express their opinions freely at rallies, demonstrations or protests, even though this word does not appear in the legislation, and with the actions of law enforcement bodies to protect public order, including cases of aggression, physical force and aids. It should provide legislative solutions that would give better regulation, including the responsibility of the organisers for damage to property, better coordination, and why not define in a clearer and more definite way the limits of the use of physical force and auxiliary means, which are included in the Ministry of the Interior Act, which does not address mass events, Zhelyazkov said.