Speaker Park Byeong-seok Submits National Assembly Act Amendment to Prevent Conflicts of Interest Among Lawmakers

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeon Jin-young] On the 29th, National Assembly Speaker Park Byeong-seok submitted a bill to amend the National Assembly Act to prevent conflicts of interest among members of the National Assembly to the National Assembly Steering Committee.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

According to the Speaker's office, Speaker Park proposed the amendment on the same day to ensure that from the stage of organizing the committees, newly elected members of the National Assembly who have private interests related to the jurisdiction of a specific standing committee are not assigned to that committee.

According to the amendment, newly elected members of the National Assembly must register not only matters falling under the scope of the "Public Officials Conflict of Interest Prevention Act" with the Ethics Review Advisory Committee but also property details stipulated by National Assembly regulations. This decision was made considering recent controversies regarding members of the National Assembly's real estate issues. The Ethics Review Advisory Committee may request explanatory materials if it deems a review necessary regarding the registered matters and will submit opinions based on the review of whether a conflict of interest exists.

Furthermore, even after the committee organization, if there is a change in private interests, the changes must be registered. In cases where a conflict of interest arises related to the review of agenda items, members must report to the Ethics Review Advisory Committee and apply to recuse themselves from the agenda review. Failure to comply may result in disciplinary action.

Regarding the purpose of directly proposing the amendment, Speaker Park explained, "Under the current National Assembly Act, the regulations to prevent conflicts of interest among members of the National Assembly are declarative and advisory," adding, "As a result, the National Assembly has not been able to properly respond to the ongoing controversies regarding conflicts of interest among members."