On behalf of the Government, Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung delivers a report submitting the draft law amending and supplementing some articles of the Law on Public Investment on October 23 (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – There have been some mixed ideas regarding the revision of the Law on Public Investment, with some lawmakers supporting the revision of only certain articles, and others that share the Government’s view that the law deserves more comprehensive amendments.
A draft law amending and supplementing some articles of the Law on Public Investment was brought under discussion on October 23 as part of the ongoing sixth session of the 14th National Assembly (NA).
The Government reported that over the past three years since it took effect, aside from many positive outcomes, there remain some shortcomings in the enforcement of the law and documents guiding its implementation.
Many new and complicated procedures have made it difficult for agencies and localities to thoroughly grasp and consistently implement regulations stipulated in the law, said Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung.
He noted that some regulations remain inflexible or insufficient, meaning that they fail to match realistic situations.
There are also some inconsistencies between the Law on Public Investment and other laws, including those on state budget, construction, land, environmental protection, organisation of local administration, and planning. They have caused confusion on how to comply with overlapping laws, thus greatly affecting the implementation of many public investment projects, Minister Dung added.
Delivering a report verifying the draft law, Chairman of the NA Committee for Financial and Budgetary Affairs Nguyen Duc Hai said the Law on Public Investment has proven to hold several flaws, especially in the procedures for verifying capital sources, allocating capital, and adjusting capital plans of projects, which has slowed down capital disbursement. Therefore, it is necessary to revise this law, he stated.
He said most members of his committee agreed with the NA Standing Committee that only some articles should be revised or supplemented. They attributed existing problems mainly to the lax enforcement of the law. Additionally, this law has only been implemented for three years – too short a period to precisely evaluate its effectiveness.
Hai provided some other perspectives on supporting the Government’s proposal for comprehensively amending the Law on Public Investment, citing that many regulations have yet to match reality and as such, comprehensive revision is needed to create a steady legal basis and thoroughly deal with difficulties and weaknesses in the state management of public investment.
In the report, the NA Committee for Financial and Budgetary Affairs emphasised its viewpoint that the draft law must institutionalise the Party’s guidelines on restructuring the economy and improving public investment effectiveness in line with Resolution No.05-NQ/TW of the 12th Party Central Committee.
It is necessary to build a steady and feasible legal framework that ensures consistency in the law system, promotes transparency, and reforms administrative procedures, Hai said.–VNA
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