With small but steady steps, the legislative process in our country is improving according to the Legislation Quality Index published by the Center for Liberal Studies (KEFIM). Examining the laws passed in the calendar year 2023, KEFIM points out, in a related press release, that the legislative quality in Greece in 2023 improved by 1.8 points, reaching 60.4/100.

In particular: “The most significant improvement in 2023 is recorded in the parliamentary procedure, in areas such as the passing of all laws by normal procedure, the reduction in the number of amendments (despite the increase in articles and their pages) and the increase in the percentage of amendments accompanied by a regulatory impact analysis’.

On the contrary, “the biggest weaknesses in 2023 are found in the pre-parliamentary process and the implementation of laws, in areas such as the low percentage of articles put up for consultation (which, however, has an increasing trend), the poor quantitative data analysis of regulatory consequences , the large number of authorizations for Ministerial Decisions and the small percentage of their activation within 6 months”.

The main findings of the Quality of Legislation Index are as follows:

“The positive developments compared to 2022:

• Legislative quality in Greece in 2023 improved by 1.8 points, reaching 60.4/100.

• The percentage of laws for which public consultation was preceded increased by 8 percentage points, from 75% to 83%.

• The percentage of articles included in the public consultation increased by 11 percentage points, from 63% to 74%.

• The average number of amendments, as well as the number of articles and pages in amendments, continued to decrease.

• The percentage of laws for which social partners were heard in parliamentary committees increased by 12 percentage points, from 76% to 88%.

The negative developments compared to 2022:

• The average percentage of amendments voted per law that were filed on the same day or one day before the vote increased from 89% to 96%. That is, the vast majority of amendments are tabled on the same day or one day before they are voted on. However, typically overdue amendments have declined.

• The percentage of laws with “other provisions” in their title, i.e. regulating several policy fields, increased from 71% to 75%.

• The average duration of the public consultation was reduced from 17 to 13 days.

• The percentage of amendments that were relevant to the main content of the law decreased from 35% to 21%. That is, only 1 out of 5 amendments is relevant to the content of the law”.

According to KEFIM, the main findings for the period 2014-2023 are as follows

• “The volume of legislation is constantly increasing. From September 2014 to December 2023, a total of over 2,000 pieces of legislation (standard laws and amendments) exceeding 40,000 pages have been issued.

• The parliamentary process is improving in small but steady steps.

• There is a significant improvement in public consultation and the passing of laws through a normal procedure.

• The improvement registered in the reduction of the number of amendments is compensated by the increase in their volume (in articles and pages).

• The improvement recorded in the reduction of the number of formally overdue amendments is offset by the increase in the number of amendments tabled on the same day or one day before their vote, which virtually leaves no room for substantive debate.

• Regulatory impact reports do not contain quantitative data, with the result that provisions are passed without knowing their impact on the economy and society.

• December sees more amendments passed than any other month, which demonstrates the volume of emergency regulations crammed into the end of the year and the low quality of legislative design.

• The quality of legislation declines significantly before the suspension of work of the Parliament for elections, as well as the summer and Christmas holidays, while at the same time the number of amendments that are voted on increases significantly.

The head of the study, former MP and public administration expert dr. Panagiotis Karkatsoulis, said: “Despite the improving trend recorded in the legislative process, the pathologies of polynomialism and mismanagement persist. A substantial amendment of the Rules of Procedure of the Parliament combined with respect for the laws and the Constitution could significantly enhance the quality of legislation in the country”.

While the executive director of the Center for Liberal Studies Nikos Rompapas made the following comment: “The Legislation Quality Index highlights again this year the significant scope for further improvement of the legislative process in our country: The substantial strengthening of the institution of public consultation, the treatment of the not at all honorable phenomenon of amendments, making more efficient use of regulatory consequences using quantitative data and speeding up the activation time of of passed laws must be priorities in the reform of the parliamentary work. To shield liberal democracy against the real and major challenges it faces today, the quality of legislation must continue to be a serious concern of ours.”