Lawmakers pledge continued backing for Referendum Legislation
In a significant move, the House of Representatives has reaffirmed its support for the Referendum Bill, with a vote of 375 in favour and none against, on Wednesday. The reaffirmed bill, now awaiting submission for royal assent, endorses a simple majority mechanism for resolving referendum questions.
The House-approved version of the bill was suspended for over 180 days due to disagreements with the Senate, an impasse that was due to differences over the voting threshold required in future referendums. The expiration of the 180-day suspension occurred during the parliamentary recess on June 17.
The bill, jointly submitted by Parit Wacharasindhu (opposition People's Party MP) and Chaturon Chaisang (ruling Pheu Thai Party list-MP), was initially suspended due to disagreements over the voting mechanism. The Senate proposed changes favouring a double majority system, but the House voted against that version.
Mr Parit has urged the government to disclose the timeline and question for the next referendum. He emphasised that the aim of reviving the bill is to ensure the legitimacy of future referendums, not to ease their passage. However, no new information about the timeline or the question for the next referendum has been disclosed yet.
Nan Boontida Somchai, the Bhumjaithai Party spokeswoman, expressed reservations about fully endorsing the bill, particularly for future referendums involving sensitive national security issues. No new information about the joint House-Senate committee review or the mechanism for resolving referendum questions was provided in this paragraph.
The double majority system, as proposed by the Senate, requires both a majority of total eligible voters and a majority of those casting ballots. The specifics of the voting threshold for future referendums have not been revealed in the recent updates.
Without more specific information about the country or the referendum in question, it's challenging to provide a precise context for this news. However, the reaffirmed Referendum Bill's progress towards royal assent indicates a significant step towards future referendums in the unspecified jurisdiction.
- The ongoing politics and policy-and-legislation debates revolve around the specifics of the voting threshold for future referendums, with the Senate proposing a double majority system, but the House favoring a simple majority mechanism, as evidenced in the House's rejection of the Senate's proposal.
- In the realm of general news, the approval of the Referendum Bill by the House of Representatives signals a potential shift in future referendum processes, yet, the timeline, question for the next referendum, and the mechanism for resolving sensitive national security issues still remain undisclosed, causing reservations among some political parties.
