Speaker of the Sejm Marek Kuchciński, Deputy Speaker of the Sejm Ryszard Terlecki, Speaker of the Senate Stanisław Karczewski, Prime Minister Beata Szydło and Law and Justice Chairman Jarosław Kaczyński presented their position on the current situation in the country.

Marshal Kuchciński recalled the controversial situation during the 33rd session of the Sejm, when he excluded the PO MP Michał Szczerba from the session and moved the session to the Columned Hall as a result of the opposition blocking the rostrum. - This decision is based on the constitutional the powers of the Speaker of the Sejm concerning the chairing of the sessions of the Sejm and the duties of the members during these sessions - he pointed out. - Discussion in plenary and questions posed during votes cannot be divorced from the substance of the matter under discussion.  In making this decision, I was exercising my constitutional duty to preside over the proceedings of the Diet which includes, among other things, naming the venue. Each of the MPs could enter the Columned Hall through its main entrance and take part in every vote, and the votes were conducted in a manner compliant with Rule 188(3) of the Rules of the Sejm - said the Speaker of the Sejm.

 

The President of the Law and Justice party expressed his condolences to the relatives of a Pole murdered during a terrorist attack in Berlin, and then assured of safety in the country. - Our decisions and efforts from the previous term of office contributed to the fact that the terrorist threat in Poland is small - he said.

Referring to recent events in the parliament, he stressed that he wants the time before Christmas to bring a positive perspective. - We are ready, in agreement with the opposition, to take action to bring the work of the media closer to those that function in many European countries - he argued. Jaroslaw Kaczynski presented a proposal modeled on the work of parliament in the United Kingdom, where every fifth meeting agenda is set by the opposition. He appealed to the opposition parties to respect the law and to compromise. - We want to stop the current practices, we want to reach out to the opposition and send them a positive signal - he said.

Prime Minister Beata Szydło argued that Poland needs dialogue and calm. She presented better and better economic indicators and recalled important programs for Poles, i.e. 500 plus, laws supporting Polish entrepreneurs or the deputy minister Morawiecki's plan focusing on the economy.

Senate Speaker Stanislaw Karczewski said that the latest bills were passed by the Senate in peace and quiet. - The PO senators understood that obstruction was unnecessary and against the rules," he said. He also admitted that there was no intention to limit journalists' access to the work of parliament.

Deputy Speaker of the Sejm Ryszard Terlecki in turn assured that the Law and Justice Club is open to talks with those opposition deputies and senators who do not want to participate in the brawls, but work for the benefit of Poland and Poles.

Statement of the Speaker of the Sejm on the conduct of the 33rd session of the Sejm on 16. 12. 2016.

On December 16, 2016, as a result of the blocking of the Sejm rostrum by members of opposition clubs and making it impossible to conduct the session, I took the decision to continue the session in the Column Hall of the Sejm of the Republic of Poland. 

This decision is based on the constitutional the powers of the Speaker of the Sejm concerning the chairing of the sessions of the Sejm and the duties of the deputies during these sessions.

 Questions have been raised about this sitting of the Diet in the House Chamber.

          My response is as follows:

      The Speaker of the Sejm has a duty under the Constitution and the Regulations of the Sejm to preside over the proceedings of the Sejm in such a way as not to allow statements deviating from the subject of the proceedings. At that time, the topic of the session was the draft state budget for 2017.

         The discussion in plenary, and the questions posed during votes, cannot be divorced from the substance of the matter under discussion. And this is exactly how a group of MPs behaved. Their speeches did not concern the budget bill, but other issues. The Members of Parliament thus violated their obligations under the Rules of Procedure of the Sejm. These actions took the form of demonstrations and occupation of the rostrum, making it impossible to conduct the voting.

     Therefore, in order to preserve solemnity and order in the Chamber, I had to take steps to ensure that the proceedings could continue. I asked the chairmen of all the parliamentary clubs to enable proceedings to be conducted in the plenary chamber. To no avail. So I had two solutions: 1/ to use the assistance of the Speaker's Guard, but I found it inadvisable. 2/ I decided to move the sitting to another chamber in order to continue the session and protect the solemnity of the Sejm. In the past, the session had already been held in the Columned Hall.

      In making this decision, I was exercising my constitutional duty to preside over a session of the Sejm, which includes designating the venue of the session.

      The Sejm passes laws by a simple majority of votes in the presence of at least half the statutory number of deputies.

      The number of MPs required by the Constitution, i.e. more than 230 MPs, participated in all the votes held in the Sejm Column Hall on December 16, 2016.

      All MPs attending the session of the Sejm on that day were informed about the continuation of the session in the Columned Hall via SMS information and through a message displayed in the Sejm plenary hall on the screens.

      Each Member could enter the Columned Hall through its main entrance and participate in any vote.

      At the session of the Sejm on that day, journalists had the opportunity to observe and record the proceedings standing at the main entrance to the Columned Hall.

      Broadcasting by the parliamentary cameras and Internet transmission was ensured. There was no violation of openness of the debates, as every part of them was broadcast and can be replayed.

As regards votes to be held in the Columned Hall, in view of the technical and organisational conditions existing there, I decided to order votes by show of hands and counting by the Members' secretaries. For this purpose the Columned Hall was divided into sectors with appointed secretaries. I announced the results of the vote on the basis of the presented protocols.

It must therefore be concluded that votes were conducted in accordance with Rule 188(3) of the Rules of Procedure of the Sejm

The 33rd session of the Sejm has ended and the budget bill has been passed.

In conclusion, I find that continued on 16 December 2016. 33 session of the Sejm in the Columned Hall was in full compliance with the Constitution of the Republic of Poland and the Rules of the Sejm.