Fast-Track Legislative Procedure During the COVID–19 Pandemic in Slovak Parliamentarism

Abstract

The Covid–19 pandemic has fundamentally changed the way we live and work. Even today, although the pandemic seems to be over, our lives are not the same as before. This has also had an impact on the functioning of constitutional bodies. We are of the opinion that adherence to the principles of democracy and the rule of law is particularly important to ensure the stability of the system in exceptional situations, such as in the case of the Covid–19 pandemic. The institution of fast-track legislative procedure (FTP) is an exceptional instrument for dealing with exceptional situations. Its purpose is to enable the Government and Parliament to take quick decisions. However, it must not be abused as this may lead to the violation of a considerable number of constitutional rules and principles. A number of tools can be used to defend against such action, such as Parliament’s rejection of the Government’s FTP proposal, the President’s intervention through his relative veto power, but above all, the Constitutional Court’s decision that a law is incompatible with the Constitution because of a breach of the rules of the legislative process.