Calls Grow to Restrict โAlcohol Access Following Disruptive Behavior in โคPolish Parliament
Warsaw, Poland โ – Aโข debate is intensifyingโ in Poland regarding alcohol consumption within the Sejm, the country’s lower house of parliament, following โrecent incidents of disruptive behavior attributed to intoxicated MPs.Calls for stricter regulations,including a complete ban on alcohol sales,are mounting from opposition leaders,while someโ governing party members defend the current situation.
Adrian Zandberg, leader of the Razem party, criticizedโ the availability of alcoholโข in the Sejm, โขstating, “People and the fact that someone can’t stop themselves from drinking a cup is unacceptable. There realy are other places โwhereโ you can devoteโค yourself to this.” He โdrew parallels to restrictions โin other institutions, asking, “Vodka is not โฃsold โin schools, nor in โฃhospitals, and you cannot buy alcohol in employee canteens at workplaces, so โwhy should the Sejm be an exception in this respect?”
The discussion was sparked โคby comments labeling certain MPs as “patho-deputies”โ – a derogatory term referencing disruptive and inappropriate โconduct. Stefan โKrajewski, โคMinister of Agriculture fromโ the Polish People’s Party (PSL) โฃand the โฃoriginator โคof the phrase, countered calls for a ban,โ arguing that โคalcohol sales in the Sejm’s restaurant have existed for โขyearsโ without impacting the โmajority of MPs. “The situations I mentioned have recently occurred when several MPs โฃterrorize others.99.9 percentโฃ MPs behave decently, butโข there are a few who wont to build popularity on extreme behavior,” krajewski told PAP.
Jarosลaw Urbaniak, head of the Rules and Deputies’ Affairs Committee โ(KO), highlighted legal hurdles to implementing measures like breathalyzer โtests, noting that parliamentary immunity would require MP consent for such procedures. He suggested focusing on voter accountability, stating, “Perhaps it would be better to formulate an appeal to voters โsimply not to elect those in their districts who behave inappropriately.”
Urbaniak also proposed โa โคmore drastic solution: abolishingโ theโ House โofโ deputies altogether. “Inโ democratic countries, MPs live in โคthe city โand there is no such โฃthing as the โDeputies’ โขHouse. โThis is a remnant โof communism. If weโฃ liquidate the Houseโ of Deputies, we will also eliminate theโ problem of ‘patho-deputies’.” โขHe clarified that alcohol is currently only served in the Marshal’s โoffice for โขofficial guests.