Members of the Ukrainian parliament have registered a draft law proposing to allow lawmakers to simultaneously hold positions in the government. The initiative does not contradict Ukrainian legislation and aims to improve communication between the parliament and the government.
This was stated in a comment to Ukrinform by Vitalii Bezgin, a Member of Parliament and co-author of the draft law.
As is known, Article 3, Part 1 of the current Law of Ukraine “On the Status of a Member of Parliament of Ukraine” generally prohibits MPs from engaging in paid work. However, it provides exceptions for teaching, scientific, creative activities, and medical practice. The law, however, does not define these types of activities, their characteristics, or legal boundaries, making unambiguous interpretation impossible.
Draft law No. 13304 proposes to introduce clear definitions of permitted activities — teaching, scientific and scientific-technical, creative, and medical — along with specific characteristics and permissible areas of engagement.
In addition, MPs propose expanding the list of allowed activities for parliamentarians to include holding positions such as Prime Minister of Ukraine, First Deputy Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister, and First Deputy or Deputy Minister (provided these positions are not classified as civil service roles under current legislation).
“In our view, implementing this initiative will improve the system, as there is currently a lack of communication between the government and parliament. Of course, there is parliamentary oversight, but if someone is potentially both a minister and a member of a parliamentary committee, communication and the reform process in a particular area of the state become much easier,” said Bezgin.
He noted that there are opponents of the initiative among his colleagues, who highlight the potential for conflicts of interest. However, he added that the practice of combining parliamentary and ministerial roles exists in 19 European countries, including Poland, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom, and France.
“I also want to emphasize that the roles of minister and deputy minister have long been political, as is the mandate of a Member of Parliament, which makes old interpretations by the Constitutional Court referencing Article 78 of the Constitution outdated. Since 2015, Cabinet members have been excluded from the list of civil service positions. The current Constitution does not explicitly prohibit an MP from serving in the government, and the position of the Constitutional Court was formed under circumstances and a political structure that differ significantly from the current context,” Bezgin explained.
He added that it’s currently difficult to predict the future of this draft law, as it has both supporters and opponents.
Source: Ukrainian lawmakers propose allowing MPs to serve as ministers
