KATHMANDU, July 30: The House of Representatives (HoR), which was expected to shift its focus to lawmaking after approving the budget for fiscal year 2026/27, is now struggling to find enough business.
Despite having a two-thirds majority government, the HoR has not received sufficient bills and proposals from the government, leaving lawmakers with limited work. The government had announced plans to introduce at least 45 bills during the budget session that began on May 11, 2026, but it has so far failed to deliver on that commitment, creating a business crunch in the House.
The HoR meeting, which had been postponed since July 15 due to a lack of business, resumed on Thursday.
A former lawmaker said Nepal had previously suffered from frequent changes of government, influence of vested interests, and prolonged delays in parliamentary committees. However, the current situation is different, he argued, as the government enjoys a near two-thirds majority after the election held following the Gen-Z Movement.
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"There are no technical or parliamentary obstacles for a government with such a strong mandate to pass bills. It is ironic that Parliament has been forced to postpone its meeting due to a lack of business even under such circumstances," the former lawmaker said.
Speaker Dol Prasad Aryal has been actively working to make parliamentary proceedings more effective, dignified, and result-oriented. He has held discussions with the Prime Minister, senior leaders of various political parties, and chief whips of ruling and opposition parties regarding the need to provide sufficient business to the HoR and expedite pending legislation.
The government is expected to send nine bills approved by the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of the Ministers to Parliament soon for discussion. Parliamentary experts have also urged the government to ensure a steady supply of bills after the budget process to keep the legislature engaged in lawmaking.
A precedent for fast-tracking legislation was set in 2018 when Parliament rapidly passed 15 bills related to fundamental rights. The Constitution had required laws necessary to implement the 31 fundamental rights under Articles 16 to 46 to be enacted within three years of its promulgation.
Following that constitutional deadline, both HoR passed 15 bills between mid-July and mid-September. Analysts say a similar push could help finalize pending and new bills by mid-September this year.
However, experts say providing parliamentary business alone will not be enough to make the legislature effective. They have suggested several reforms, including introducing a parliamentary calendar specifying meeting dates and agendas, ensuring regular responses from the prime minister and ministers to issues raised by lawmakers, preventing disruptions caused by a lack of quorum, encouraging lawmakers to prioritize legislation and policy debates, ending unnecessary obstruction of parliamentary proceedings, strengthening clause-by-clause discussions in committees, and making Parliament more digital and transparent.
The parliamentary schedule from May 11 to June 29 has been made public, but no schedule has been announced for the period after that.
Meanwhile, the government has unveiled another plan without first fulfilling its earlier commitment to introduce laws. The plan prioritizes registering 166 bills within the current fiscal year, including 64 bills in the first four months. However, not a single new bill has been registered so far.
The Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs has declared this year as the "Year of Lawmaking." With a strong government and a new generation of lawmakers, expectations are high that HoR will regain momentum and accelerate the lawmaking process.
