Lukashenko again sent the draft decree on control and supervisory activities back for revision
The President of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, has sent the draft decree on supervisory activities for revision again. This was reported to journalists by the Chairman of the State Control Committee, Vasily Gerasimov, following a meeting with the head of state, as conveyed by a BELTA correspondent.
This issue was already discussed at the presidential level during a meeting in May last year. At that time, Alexander Lukashenko instructed to revise the draft decree to ensure that the document is clear and convenient for use. There was also a task to change the style and methods of work of the supervisory bodies, focusing on improving work efficiency.
However, once again, it was not possible to reach a common denominator. The draft decree will be further revised on a number of issues raised during the discussion. Interested state bodies will need to find a compromise, reconsider approaches, and issue a document of appropriate quality.
"The draft decree was discussed in detail with the head of state. During the discussion, questions arose that will need to be revised. The Council of Ministers, the General Prosecutor's Office, and the State Control Committee will undertake this work to ensure that a document of appropriate quality is issued," - said Vasily Gerasimov.
According to him, no specific deadlines for revising the document were set. However, they do not intend to delay this issue, as the decree No. 510 "On Improving Supervisory Activities in the Republic of Belarus," adopted in 2009, has indeed become outdated, and the field itself requires certain adjustments, not only technical ones.
"The essence of supervisory activities has also changed. We place greater emphasis on prevention and prophylaxis. The head of state sets the task for us to maintain a balance: if you violate - you will definitely be held accountable, and there will be no exceptions in this case; if you work normally - there will be no claims against you, and we will not burden you with frequent visits," - explained the chairman of the State Control Committee.
Vasily Gerasimov noted that since 2020, the number of inspections has decreased by half. "That is, control is becoming more qualitative. We go where there are indeed problems," - he added.
What are the main innovations of the draft decree
The new draft decree is a large comprehensive document that consolidates all issues related to supervisory activities. Its development took into account, among other things, proposals from local authorities, enterprises, and business circles.
"The main elements of the document are based on the current decree on supervisory activities. These include forms of control, levels of decision-making, procedural aspects, and procedures for conducting inspections. These measures are quite effective today," - noted the Minister of Taxes and Levies, Dmitry Kiiko.
At the same time, the government deemed it necessary to optimize supervisory activities in some sense, strengthen preventive and explanatory work, and additionally protect the rights of the subjects being inspected.
Why the document was sent for revision again
One of the contentious issues in the document was the provision that explanations from state bodies of various levels should be mandatory for supervisory bodies. The State Control Committee disagreed with this proposal. "The analysis we conducted indicates that even in different regions, interpretations vary. Not to mention that the same body can issue explanations of completely different nature. Therefore, we will discuss this further," - explained Vasily Gerasimov.
The next ambiguous point concerns the government's proposal to include records of all visits in the inspection log. The State Control Committee believes that this will only create inconveniences for the current activities of officials, and the inspection log will turn into a visitor log.
"If, for example, the governor goes to check the order on the ground or the sowing, why should he go to the head office of the farm and register in this log? This applies to both the chairman of the district executive committee and myself as the authorized representative for the Grodno region. Where it is necessary (inspection or monitoring), it should definitely be there. If it goes through another line, it will probably be excessive," - believes the chairman of the State Control Committee.
Dmitry Kiiko added that the President also instructed to study the draft decree for its compliance with the Constitution and other legislative acts. "Following the discussion, the head of state proposed to the government and other supervisory bodies (including the State Control Committee and the General Prosecutor's Office) to try to find compromises that would satisfy both the executive bodies and the subjects to which these norms will apply," - summarized the minister.
Whether the updated draft decree will be submitted again for the President's consideration is still unknown. If there are no disagreements regarding the document, it may be adopted in a working order.