The National Assembly convened a plenary session under the chair of NA Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan on June 12, passing two resolutions and three bills.

The National Assembly passed two resolutions and three bills on June 12.

In the morning, the legislature approved a resolution approving the State budget balance in 2016 and another on the NA’s supervision programme, with 95.48 percent and 92.2 percent of votes.

Under the NA resolution approving the State budget balance in 2016, total budget revenues stood at 1,407,572 billion VND, and total spending at 1,574,448 billion VND, translated into overspending of 248,728 billion VND, equal to 5.52 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The overspending was financed by domestic loans (197,165 billion VND) and foreign loans (51,563 billion VND). 

The resolution on the NA’s supervision programme for 2019 said at the 7th session, the NA will consider the Government’s supplementary report on socio-economic performance and state budget implementation in 2018 and the first months of 2019. 

Meanwhile, three draft laws adopted at the sitting are the Law on Cyber Security, the Law on Competition (revised) and the Law on Denunciation (revised). 

The Law on Cyber Security was approved with 86.86 percent of votes. 

It has 7 chapters and 43 articles, regulating activities to protect national security and ensure social order and safety on cyberspace, and responsibilities of agencies, organisations and individuals concerned. 

Before voting, the NA heard a report delivered by Chairman of the NA Committee for National Defence and Security Vo Trong Viet on the revisions made to the draft law based on NA deputies’ opinions. 

With 95.28 percent of approval votes, the NA passed the Law on Competition (revised), which has 10 chapters and 118 articles. The law will take effect as of July 1, 2019.

Meanwhile, the Law on Denunciation (revised) was adopted with 96.1 percent of votes. It will take effect on January 1, 2019.

In the afternoon, the lawmakers discussed the draft law on amendments and supplements to a number of articles of the Law on Higher Education. They emphasised the need to issue this law and commented on higher education system, administration and autonomy of tertiary education institutions, organisation and management of training, financial mechanisms for higher education, and State management on university education, among others.

Minister of Education and Training Phung Xuan Nha explained and clarified some of these issues.

On June 13, the National Assembly will debate the draft Law on Anti-Corruption (revised). The discussion will be broadcast live on the Vietnam Television, Radio the Voice of Vietnam and the NA Television Channel.-VNA