Zagreb - Of nearly 700 written questions submitted by MPs to the government during the current 11th parliamentary term, ministers have failed to answer 151, Sabor Speaker Gordan Jandroković said on Tuesday, urging them to respond to the outstanding questions within eight days.
MPs have submitted 696 written questions to the government during the current parliamentary term.
SDP MP Marija Lugarić said she was personally awaiting answers to 13 questions, the oldest dating back to October 2024 and addressed to Prime Minister Andrej Plenković.
Marin Živković of We Can! said he was awaiting answers to five or six questions submitted to Defence Minister Ivan Anušić.
"Failing to answer MPs' questions makes a mockery of democracy and parliamentary oversight of the government. This is a constitutional obligation. We must respect the deadlines, otherwise we lose a key oversight mechanism, which is the Parliament's main role," Damir Barbir of Centre said.
Under Parliament's rules of procedure, government members must answer MPs' questions within 30 days of receiving them.
If the government or a minister cannot respond within that period, they must, through the Parliament speaker, inform the MP of the reasons for the delay and when the answer will be provided.