SolomonStarNews.com, Published: 02 November 2016
PRIME Minister Manasseh Sogavare has adjourned Parliament to November 14.
Six bills will be ready for deliberation by Parliament at the Second Reading stage when it resumes its final sitting for this year on the 14th of November.
The bills- Town and Country Planning (Amendment) Bill 2016, Land Surveyors Bill 2016, Child and Welfare Bill 2016, Adoption (Amendment) Bill 2016, Pacific Games 2023 Bill 2016 and Solomon Islands Tertiary Education and Skills Authority Bill 2016- were put through the First Reading Stage when Parliament convened yesterday morning for the final 2016 session.
After the first Reading of the Bills, Prime Minister moved a Motion of Special Adjournment seeking approval of the House to postpone the meeting to November 14 to allow the Bills and Legislation Committee to inquire into these bills and also for Cabinet to deliberate on the 2017 Budget and other bills to be brought to Parliament this session.
When moving the motion, the Prime Minister said:
“I would like to move that the adjournment of Parliament on Tuesday 2nd November 2016-the present meeting- shall stand adjourned till Monday 14th November 2016.
“The reason is that a number of bills have been submitted to Parliament and the Bills and Legislation Committee will need to inquire into before we can deliberate on them at the Second Reading stage when we resume our present meeting on November 14.
“This motion will also give a little more time for the Government to look at the (2017) Budget.
“There are also other bills including the Dual Citizenship Bill that still need to be submitted to Parliament. So we need that space of time to complete these tasks.”
