An attempt by opposition lawmakers yesterday to force the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) to return a revised draft amendment of the Labor Standards Act (勞動基準法) to committee review was stymied after DPP caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘) called absent DPP lawmakers to the meeting to vote down the proposal.
The legislature’s Social Welfare and Environmental Hygiene Committee yesterday held a meeting to review environmental protection budget requests, during which New Power Party (NPP) Legislator Hsu Yung-ming (徐永明) made a point of order about what he called “procedural flaws” during a joint committee review of the proposed amendment on Monday last week.
A motion by DPP lawmakers on the two committees to send the revision to cross-caucus negotiations was passed during the review.
Photo: Chu Pei-hsiung, Taipei Times
The time that DPP Legislator Lin Ching-yi (林靜儀), who chaired the joint review, gave each lawmaker to speak about the issue and to question officials was too short, Hsu said.
When Lin sought other lawmakers’ consent for her to sign off on the meeting minutes, some lawmakers filed objections, which Lin ignored, he said.
The meeting last week should be voided and the revised amendment should be returned to committee review, he said.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Lee Yen-hsiu (李彥秀) then filed a motion to end discussions and put the legitimacy of last week’s meeting to a vote.
Despite a staff member at the legislature advising against the move, saying that the decisions reached during a joint committee review should not be overturned by a single committee, KMT Legislator Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安), who chaired yesterday’s meeting, announced that the committee would proceed with the vote.
The vote was initially tied with four lawmakers voting for and four against Lee’s motion. Chiang broke the tie by casting a “yes” vote.
“How does it feel being forced to end discussions? I hope that lawmakers from the ruling party will refrain from doing this anymore,” Hsu said, as a visibly apprehensive Ker rushed to the podium to reason with Chiang.
Ker’s move drew protests from Hsu, who told him to “stop gesturing” and stop interfering with his plan to file a procedural motion.
The two then engaged in a loud exchange, while other DPP lawmakers claimed the vote was illegitimate.
Seeing that the meeting had been thrown into turmoil, Chiang called a 10-minute break, during which Ker informed other DPP lawmakers on the committee of the situation.
When Lee tendered another motion to have committee members vote on the validity of last week’s meeting minutes after the break, more DPP lawmakers joined the meeting and Lee’s proposal was eventually struck down.
Three Taiwanese airlines have prohibited passengers from packing Bluetooth earbuds and their charger cases in checked luggage. EVA Air and Uni Air said that Bluetooth earbuds and charger cases are categorized as portable electronic devices, which should be switched off if they are placed in checked luggage based on international aviation safety regulations. They must not be in standby or sleep mode. However, as charging would continue when earbuds are placed in the charger cases, which would contravene international aviation regulations, their cases must be carried as hand luggage, they said. Tigerair Taiwan said that earbud charger cases are equipped
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
UNILATERAL MOVES: Officials have raised concerns that Beijing could try to exert economic control over Kinmen in a key development plan next year The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) yesterday said that China has so far failed to provide any information about a new airport expected to open next year that is less than 10km from a Taiwanese airport, raising flight safety concerns. Xiamen Xiangan International Airport is only about 3km at its closest point from the islands in Kinmen County — the scene of on-off fighting during the Cold War — and construction work can be seen and heard clearly from the Taiwan side. In a written statement sent to Reuters, the CAA said that airports close to each other need detailed advanced
WEATHER Typhoon forming: CWA A tropical depression is expected to form into a typhoon as early as today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, adding that the storm’s path remains uncertain. Before the weekend, it would move toward the Philippines, the agency said. Some time around Monday next week, it might reach a turning point, either veering north toward waters east of Taiwan or continuing westward across the Philippines, the CWA said. Meanwhile, the eye of Typhoon Kalmaegi was 1,310km south-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, as of 2am yesterday, it said. The storm is forecast to move through central
RSS