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Zagreb - The parliamentary opposition on Monday endorsed changes to the Social Welfare Act, which members of the parliamentary majority said would enhance support for the most vulnerable groups in society, but it resented the way they were being adopted.
We proposed a number of changes previously, the last ones in March, when MP Anka Mrak Taritaš's proposal to extend the status of caregiver parents after their child's death was rejected, opposition MPs said during a debate on the amendments.
"In March we were told that there was no need to amend the law, and it took one weekend for the prime minister to realise that there was a need to amend it. How many parents had to register with the employment office because their child died in the meantime," asked Mrak Taritaš (GLAS).
It was only after public pressure and protests that the government embarked on amending the law, to prevent further damage to the PM's reputation, said Martina Vlašić Iljkić (SDP).
Marija Selak Raspudić (Bridge) said that if the ruling majority wanted to regulate the status of persons with disabilities and their caregivers, it could prove its good intentions by adopting a set of other legislative amendments.
Katarina Peović (Workers Front) said that the ruling majority did not accept a single bill or amendment coming from opposition MPs.
Emil Daus (IDS) said this was the third amendment of the law in a year, questioning the capacity of people working at the competent ministries to deal with problems in a comprehensive and systematic way.
Nada Murganić (HDZ) stressed that amendments were adopted within the deadline the government committed itself to.
In addition to extending the status of caregiver parents, the amount of allowances had to be adjusted and additional rights had to be regulated as well, she said, with the State Secretary at the Labour, Pension System and Social Policy Ministry, Marija Pletikosa, elaborating on the additional rights.