The Parliament of Montenegro adopted today amendments to a set of laws that provide for a 30 percent increase in the salaries of judges and state prosecutors.
MPs adopted amendments to the laws on the Judicial Council and Judges, on the State Prosecutor's Office, and on the Constitutional Court.
The amendments to the Law on the Judicial Council and Judges and on the Constitutional Court were supported by 58 MPs, while three abstained, and there were no votes against.
63 MPs voted in favor of the amendments to the Law on the State Prosecutor's Office, three abstained, and no votes were cast against.
Justice Minister Bojan Božović previously said that the amendments to the law stipulate that judges, court presidents, state prosecutors and heads of prosecutors' offices, as well as judges of the Constitutional Court, are entitled to a salary supplement in the amount of 30 percent of the basic salary.
He pointed out that working conditions in the judiciary are inadequate, that for years, apart from special allowances, there have been no interventions in salaries, and that this was one of the topics of negotiations with representatives of the judiciary during the past year.
At that time, as Božović explained, it was agreed that through amendments to the Law on Salaries in the Public Sector, judges and prosecutors would receive a 30 percent salary increase, but since that law is not yet in the procedure, the Ministry of Justice proposed amendments to existing laws.
"This provision would apply until the end of this year, and in parallel, we have already worked on preparing a new comprehensive law that will relate to the salaries and other rights of judicial office holders in Montenegro," added Božović.
He said that they are currently in communication with the Ministry of Finance in order to shape that legal text and that, once completed, it will be forwarded to the European Commission.
The Parliament also adopted the Law on Health Care, the goal of which, as previously announced, is to create an efficient, accessible and sustainable health system, based on prevention, expertise and transparency.
Today, MPs also voted on laws on the legalization of illegal buildings, on financing local self-government, as well as amendments to the Law on the Protection of Cultural Property.
The Parliament did not adopt the Bill on Amnesty for Persons Convicted of Criminal Offenses Prescribed by the Laws of Montenegro and Persons Convicted of Foreign Criminal Judgments Being Executed in Montenegro, which was proposed by MPs from the New Serbian Democracy and the Democratic People's Party.
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