The Government gives opinions on 2 draft laws and 2 proposals for law making.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh chairs the Government's special meeting on law-making in July 2024 (Photo: VNA)

According to Resolution 118/NQ-CP, at the Government's special session on law-making in July 2024, the Government gave its opinions on the proposal to develop the Law on State of Emergency and the Law on Science and Technology (amended), the draft Law on Employment (amended) and the draft Law on Electricity (amended).

It is necessary to develop a Law on State of Emergency to improve the effectiveness of prevention, response and overcoming the consequences of natural disasters.

Regarding the Proposal to develop a Law on State of Emergency, the Government highly appreciated the Ministry of National Defense for presiding over and coordinating with relevant ministries and agencies to propose the law and submit it to the Government in accordance with the provisions of the Law on Promulgation of Legal Documents. It agreed on the necessity of developing a Law on State of Emergency to institutionalize the Party's policies and guidelines; the Constitution's provisions on human rights and citizens' rights; create a complete, unified, and synchronous legal basis, improve the effectiveness of civil defense work, prevent, respond, and overcome the consequences of natural disasters; overcome shortcomings from the recent practice of preventing and fighting the COVID-19 pandemic, and at the same time legalize current regulations on the state of emergency.

The Ministry of National Defense shall preside over and coordinate with relevant agencies to study and absorb as much as possible the opinions of ministries, branches, and Government members; review relevant laws, ensure feasibility, and avoid overlap; and complete the proposal for law making in the following direction:

- Policy 1: Continue to thoroughly study the concept of emergency and state of emergency in cyberspace, clearly define the scope of regulation, level, measures, and time of application in a state of emergency; mobilize resources to perform tasks; involve people and businesses in a state of emergency; develop policy mechanisms and implementation procedures that must be quick, flexible, and creative; decentralize and decentralize to the maximum extent associated with resource allocation and have a mechanism to monitor implementation; ensure clear distinction of decision-making authority and application of special measures of subjects in a state of emergency according to different natures and levels, ensuring timeliness, feasibility, and suitability to practice.

- Policy 2: Regarding support for people and businesses, carefully review current legal regulations, select appropriate content to regulate, ensure suitability, feasibility, and consistency with the legal system; clearly propose solutions to have criteria and levels of support and relief associated with the decision-making authority of each level.

- Policy 3: Regarding additional measures to be applied in situations where level 3 civil defense has been declared but the disaster or incident has complicated developments, causing particularly serious consequences without the need to declare a state of emergency: Do not propose this policy but agree to implement it in accordance with the Law on Civil Defense, the Law on National Security and relevant laws.

The Government assigned the Ministry of National Defense to preside over and coordinate with the Ministry of Justice, the Government Office and relevant ministries and agencies to complete the dossier of the Proposal for Law development in accordance with the provisions of the Law on Promulgation of Legal Documents and send it to the Ministry of Justice; assigned the Minister of Justice, authorized by the Prime Minister, to sign on behalf of the Government a submission to the National Assembly Standing Committee to add this draft law to the National Assembly's Law and Ordinance Development Program for 2025 (submit to the National Assembly for comments at the 9th Session and approve at the 10th Session).

Expanding loan support subjects and unemployment insurance participants

To complete the draft Law on Employment (amended), the Government requests the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs to continue to summarize, review and evaluate to ensure the content of the draft Law is feasible, thoroughly handle difficulties and problems in the process of implementing legal regulations on employment, ensure consistency and synchronization with the law in related fields. In particular, it is necessary to closely follow the policies, orientations and strategies of the Party and State on developing human resources in a flexible and modern manner, meeting the requirements and development trends in the country and the world, especially in the network environment, high technology, adapting to the aging rate of Vietnam's population.

The Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs needs to effectively organize consultation activities, collect opinions from affected subjects, experts, businesses, agencies and organizations at the grassroots level; at the same time, deploy appropriate communication activities for new policies and contents that affect the majority of workers, businesses... to ensure the feasibility of the draft law and create consensus among society, people, organizations, relevant agencies and subjects directly affected by the law.

At the same time, the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs shall preside over and closely coordinate with relevant ministries and agencies to research and absorb the maximum opinions of Government members to make appropriate regulations, ensuring full legal basis and feasibility of regulations on labor registration and management; support and create sustainable and satisfactory jobs for workers without labor relations; preferential loan policies associated with conditions, processes, procedures...; expand loan support subjects, subjects participating in unemployment insurance...; National Employment Fund model; regulations on working time limits for students...

The content of the draft law must ensure consistency with the policy groups approved by the Government; ensure maximum decentralization and delegation of power in state management; simplify and modernize administrative procedures; promote digital transformation; not create a mechanism of asking and giving; prevent and combat corruption and negative acts in the field of labor and employment, improve the efficiency of connecting supply and demand of the labor market...

Supplementing a protection mechanism for those who dare to think and act in scientific research

Regarding the Proposal to develop the Law on Science and Technology (amended), the Government agreed to change the name of the law to the Law on Science, Technology and Innovation, assigning the Ministry of Science and Technology to preside over and coordinate with relevant ministries and agencies to focus on perfecting the policies in the proposal to develop the law. In particular, carefully study and evaluate the implementation of the 2013 Law on Science and Technology, clearly identify the regulations that are still suitable for inheritance; regulations that are no longer suitable for practice, requirements of state management and development of this activity in current conditions; study and selectively refer to international experience, ensuring suitability with the political characteristics and practical conditions of Vietnam, ensuring the goal of sustainable development and feasibility of new policies.

The content of the proposal to develop a law must clearly demonstrate the principles and policies to promote decentralization and delegation of power in state management between central agencies and local authorities regarding licensing authority, inspection, examination, supervision, etc., associated with ensuring the allocation of resources and law enforcement capacity to localities, agencies and organizations; promote administrative procedure reform, eliminate hassles, eliminate the "ask - give" mechanism, reduce compliance costs; seriously assess the impact on administrative procedures according to regulations, and at the same time have a plan to assign specific responsibilities to competent authorities to specify details, in order to ensure feasibility when applied in practice and prevent and combat acts of corruption, negativity and violations of the law in this field.

The Government requested the Ministry of Science and Technology to review relevant legal provisions, especially those on the state budget, tax laws, management and use of public assets, and management and use of science and technology funds, thereby proposing specific mechanisms to facilitate the mobilization, management, and attraction of resources outside the state budget; mechanisms for accepting risky investments and handling risk responsibilities; mechanisms for managing and using assets formed from scientific research; mechanisms for public-private partnership in research and implementation of science and technology tasks... to overcome current difficulties and obstacles, promote the development of science, technology, and innovation.

In case there are specific regulations for science, technology and innovation development that are different from the provisions of relevant laws, it is necessary to clearly state which regulations they are and propose a solution in this Law or in relevant laws.

At the same time, review policies on developing human resources for science, technology and innovation, research and supplement mechanisms to attract human resources, high-quality human resources, and mechanisms to protect those who dare to think and dare to do in scientific research.

Thoroughly overcome difficulties and shortcomings in the practical implementation of the 2004 Electricity Law

Regarding the draft Law on Electricity (amended) , the Government basically agreed on the content of the draft law; assigned the Ministry of Industry and Trade to preside over and coordinate with relevant ministries and agencies to study and absorb as much as possible the opinions of Government members and opinions at the Government meeting to complete the draft law dossier.

In which, the Ministry of Industry and Trade noted to fully institutionalize the Party's policies and guidelines on electricity development, build a competitive, transparent, effective electricity market, in accordance with the socialist-oriented market economy institution, ensure electricity supply security, national security, meet electricity demand for socio-economic development, serve the people; thoroughly overcome difficulties, obstacles, and shortcomings in the practical implementation of the 2004 Electricity Law; in accordance with international treaties to which Vietnam is a member; ensure the formation of a complete, transparent, and specific legal framework to regulate electricity activities and current electricity development requirements;

Complete the summary report on the implementation of the 2004 Electricity Law; clearly identify the problems and difficulties in the implementation practice, the causes of the problems and difficulties to amend and supplement this draft law; consult experts, scientists, practitioners, relevant individuals and organizations to complete the specific policies and regulations of the draft law; promote the communication of policies and important contents of the draft law to create high consensus among the people, businesses, relevant agencies and organizations and subjects directly affected by the draft law;

Continue to review and ensure consistency and synchronization with the provisions of relevant laws such as: Investment Law, Public Investment Law, Planning Law, Environmental Protection Law, Vietnam Sea Law, Civil Defense Law, Irrigation Law...

In case of regulations on specific contents on planning, investment mechanisms, investment procedures, decentralization, delegation of powers, administrative procedures... that are different from the provisions of current laws, it is necessary to clearly state which regulations they are and propose solutions in this law or related laws.

Research and develop mechanisms to promote investment, construction and exploitation of new energy sources and renewable energy; encourage the conversion of fossil fuels to low-emission fuels in electricity production; general policies on safe nuclear power plants; specific regulations on levels and factors of the competitive electricity market, electricity prices according to the market mechanism with State regulation; specific regulations on planning, implementation plans for electricity development planning, investment, construction of emergency electricity projects and works, offshore wind power... must be based on scientific, reasonable and feasible bases; State policies on proactive reserve investment to regulate the safety of the electricity system; specific regulations on measures to ensure safety in electricity production, generation, transmission, distribution and use; construction, management, operation and sharing of information systems and databases on electricity...;

Complete the content of state management in the electricity sector, clearly define the responsibilities of agencies; strengthen inspection and supervision, especially the development of power sources to encourage private investment; promote decentralization, decentralization, administrative procedure reform, technology application, digital transformation; create a complete and clear legal basis to prevent and combat corruption and negative acts, end the "ask - give" situation in electricity management, planning and investment in electricity projects;

Regarding power grid projects in the planning list with voltage level of 220kV or lower, passing through 2 or more provinces: clearly define the responsibilities and authority to approve investment policies, policies to convert forest use purposes (if any)... of the People's Committee of the province where the power grid passes through; responsibilities of investors in accordance with the administrative boundaries of the province; ensure conformity and synchronization with the power development plan and unify connection locations at the borders of provinces; tasks and coordination roles of central agencies (if necessary);

Regarding offshore wind power policies: review and ensure compliance with international practices, ensure national defense, security, marine environment, national and ethnic interests, and suitability with the context and conditions of Vietnam in each period; regulations on specific mechanisms (output and commitment period), offshore wind power development in the draft law must clearly define responsibilities and authority, ensure the legislative principles of the National Assembly, and assign the Government to specify details, suitable to the conditions of Vietnam in each period to be proactive and flexible in directing the promulgation and implementation of policies to attract domestic and foreign investment in offshore wind power development;

Regarding restrictions on foreign investors' access to the market for offshore wind power: review and ensure consistency with the provisions of the Investment Law and other relevant laws on investment and conditional business; do not specifically stipulate the shareholding ratio and capital contribution of foreign investors in offshore wind power projects; the law stipulates general principles, and assigns the Government to specify regulations in accordance with Vietnam's conditions in each period;

Regarding the policy on rooftop solar power and small-scale wind power serving the daily needs of households, state agency headquarters, and public works: The law does not stipulate a mechanism for offsetting excess electricity output to the system with electricity output purchased from the system if this mechanism increases pressure on the power system, affects the security and safety of the power system, or negatively impacts investment policies for developing other types of electricity; further research on other solutions and options that have advantages over the offsetting option to stipulate principles in the draft law, and assign the Government to specify details, ensuring consistency with development goals and conditions of the power system in each period.

TB (according to Government Newspaper)

Source: https://baohaiduong.vn/chinh-phu-cho-y-kien-doi-voi-2-du-an-luat-2-de-nghi-xay-dung-luat-390140.html