At the sitting held on 14 December, the Finance Committee discussed in principle the Bills included in the agenda for the Sixth Sitting of the Second Regular Session of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia in 2009.

The sitting was chaired by the Committee Chairman, Zoran Krasic, while representatives of the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Science and Technological Development presented the Bills to the Finance Committee.

Following a discussion, the Committee members accepted the Bill amending and modifying the Law on Takeover of Joint-Stock Companies, in principle, by a majority of votes, with the reserved opinions of deputies Zoran Krasic, Lidija Dimitrijevic and Slobodan Maras.

The Committee also accepted the Bill amending and modifying the Public Debt Law, by a majority of votes, with the reserved opinions of the same deputies.

By a majority of votes, the Committee also accepted in principle the Bill amending and modifying the Insurance Law and the Bills on the Confirmation of the Loan Agreement between the Republic of Serbia and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (Second Programmatic Private and Financial Sector Development Loan), on the Confirmation of the Loan Agreement between the Republic of Serbia and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (Programmatic Public Finance Development Loan), on the Confirmation of the Loan Agreement (K10) between the Republic of Serbia and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, on the Confirmation of the Finance Contract between the Republic of Serbia and the European Investment Bank – Motorway Corridor 10 (E-75), on the Confirmation of the Finance Contract between the Republic of Serbia and the European Investment Bank “Loan for municipal and regional infrastructure B”, as well as the Bill on the indebtedness of the Republic of Serbia at Eurobank EFG a.d. Belgrade . Deputies Zoran Krasic and Lidija Dimitrijevic, reserved their opinions on these Bills.

By a majority of votes, the Committee members endorsed the Government’s amendment to article 3 of the Bill on the Confirmation of the Loan Agreement between the Republic of Serbia and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (Second Programmatic Private and Financial Sector Development Loan) and the Government’s amendment to article 3 of the Bill on the Confirmation of the Loan Agreement between the Republic of Serbia and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (Programmatic Public Finance Development Loan).

In the continuation, on 15 December, the committee members voted on the particulars of the Republic of Serbia 2010 Budget Bill, Bill amending and modifying the Law on Takeover of Joint-Stock Companies, Bill amending and modifying the Public Debt Law, Bill amending and modifying the Insurance Law and the Bill on the indebtedness of the Republic of Serbia at Eurobank EFG a.d. Belgrade.

A total of 242 amendments were submitted to the Republic of Serbia 2010 Budget Bill. The Government and the Committee accepted 13 of the amendments, and the Committee also accepted an amendment submitted by the Government, to article 3 of the Bill.

The Government and the Committee accepted none of the 6 amendments submitted to the Bill amending and modifying the Law on Takeover of Joint-Stock Companies.

Two amendments each were submitted to the Bills amending and modifying the Public Debt Law and the Insurance Law, which were not accepted by either the Government or the Committee.