MPs did not support as a basis the government draft law No. 10439 on the reform of the Bureau of Economic Security (BES). The draft law was sent for a repeated first reading with a shortened consideration period.
The MP from the "Voice" party Yaroslav Zheleznyak reported this.
222 MPs voted pro, 18 — voted contra, 8 abstained, and 51 did not vote.
The government proposes that only BES and the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) can conduct audits of the financial and economic activities of businesses, regardless of their form of ownership. The National Police and SBU are proposed to be excluded from the list of state financial control bodies. The draft law also proposes a new procedure for electing the director of BES.
This draft law is actively criticized. The MP Yaroslav Zheleznyak spoke against it, calling it a "pseudo-reform authored by Tatarov-Shurma without re-certification, change of management, transparent competitions", and the head of the Anti-Corruption Center Vitaliy Shabunin.
Analytical centers also opposed the government bill: Institute of Socio-Economic Transformation, CASE Ukraine, Institute of Tax Reforms, Center of Economic Strategy. The European Business Association asked to support the alternative draft law No. 10439-2, because it believes that it will be able to really reform the BEB and make it independent.
Why is this important?
Restarting the Bureau of Economic Security has become one of the conditions for Ukraine in the IMFʼs extended financing program. Support from the EU is tied to this reform. However, the government bill goes against the partnersʼ proposals.
The memorandum with the Fund talks about making changes to the current law that regulates the activities of BES. The key goal is to develop transparent criteria for the selection of staff and management of the bureau. The document also states that BES should be subordinated to the Ministry of Finance, and not to the direction of the government, as it is now. A group of ambassadors of the "Big Seven" countries is asking to reform the Security Council, strengthen its independence and efficiency. This is in the list of priority reforms for 2024.
On December 29, 2023, the Cabinet of Ministers approved and submitted to the Verkhovna Rada a draft law that proposes to "restart" the work of BES, but it was criticized by the Communist Party of Ukraine and some peopleʼs deputies.
Already on February 12, 2024, the Verkhovna Rada registered draft law No. 10439-2, which is an alternative to the one previously submitted by the Cabinet of Ministers.