Prosecutor General’s Office not monitoring MPs compliance with access to information laws

The Prosecutor General’s Office says it does not monitor compliance with legislation by members of parliament. This was the information received by the Legal Analytics Expert Advisory Center which is monitoring compliance with laws on access to public information with support from the International Renaissance Foundation’s Rule of Law Program.

The Center filed a complaint with the Prosecutor General’s Office after lawmakers failed to provide information about their income declarations. Experts stress that when elected representatives don’t respond to public inquiries they are not held accountable by the prosecutor’s office, despite sanctions being in place in Ukraine for such violations.  

According to experts, ambiguous legal norms and conflicting legislation allow parliamentarians to ignore access to information legislation. They believe there needs to be a clear regulatory mechanism for holding MPs accountable for their actions or inaction. However, this requires amending legislation, the responsibility of which is in the hands of these very same parliamentarians.  

MPs are required by law to provide information in response to citizens’ inquiries. The prosecutor’s office is responsible for monitoring compliance with applicable laws.

Contacts:
Legal Analytics Expert Advisory Center
Maryana Bulgakova, bulgakova@legalanalytics.com.ua
Andriy Petriv, petriv@legalanalytics.com.ua
(+380 32) 225 77 18

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The aim of the Rule of Law Program is to support the civil society initiatives directed to the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms, to promote strengthened legal consciousness and public activity at the central and local levels.