Political consensus and "reformulation" stall 120 draft laws in the Iraqi Parliament

Shafaq News / The Parliamentary Legal Committee tallied the number of "stalled" draft laws in the Iraqi Parliament, including four significant bills.

Committee member Mohammed Anouz told Shafaq News Agency, "Many laws are stalled in Parliament, some requiring political consensus while others need technical rephrasing."

"The stalled laws, pending readings, discussions, and votes, amount to over 120, the most crucial among them being Amnesty, Federal Court, Retirement, Oil, and Gas laws."

He noted, "The delay in passing important laws in Parliament is linked to political consensus as well as the delayed appointment of a Parliament Speaker."

On Wednesday, December 27, 2023, Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani directed the formation of a committee to review the Federal Court Law draft.

Earlier this year, the committee completed its work and submitted the draft law to the Prime Minister for presentation to the Cabinet for voting before entering negotiations with political forces about it before referring it to Parliament, according to Prime Minister's Constitutional Affairs Advisor Hassan Al-yasiri.

As for the Oil and Gas Law, it remains a subject of debate in Iraq following talks about preparing a new version, amid indications of disagreement over its passage given the diverging opinions within the Coordination Framework.

The Oil and Gas Law, stalled in the Iraqi Parliament since its first session to date, is one of the most prominent points where a preliminary agreement between Baghdad and Erbil was reached, but signs of disagreement may affect its passage.