Laws tied to constitutional amendments on House agenda - Ensour

AMMAN — The Lower House will have a busy schedule during its upcoming extraordinary session, which is expected to begin next week, as it will include several laws that require endorsement in line with the 2011 constitutional amendments, according to Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour.

During a meeting with members of the parliamentary National Union Party bloc at the Prime Ministry on Monday, talks focused on several local issues and the latest regional developments, especially the Israeli aggression on Gaza. 

Ensour noted that His Majesty King Abdullah accurately summed up the political conditions in Jordan and the regional situation in his interview with Al Ghad Arabic daily published Sunday.

Amending the Lower House’s Rules of Procedure is a milestone in parliamentary work that will boost the image of the Chamber of Deputies and its performance, the premier told the MPs, stressing that the government will deal with the House and deputies with respect and transparency, whether they support its policies or oppose them. 

He said maintaining state hegemony and rule of law are the main requisites to achieve comprehensive development, noting that the government started gradually regaining and imposing its hegemony and that no one is above the law. 

Responding to deputies’ remarks on the issue of unemployment, the premier said this problem can be resolved through developing the economy and not through recruiting more employees at public institutions that are already over-staffed. 

He highlighted Jordan’s position on the crisis in Syria and its direct repercussions on the Kingdom as well as on the Israeli aggression on Gaza. 

The bloc’s leader, Mohammad Khashman (National Union Party list), gave credit to the government for being able to pull the country out of its economic crisis despite the surrounding regional circumstances. 

He said deputies are committed to finalising the reform-related legislation.