Council of Ministers examines draft law amending provisions of Penal Code

Tunis: A council of ministers, was held, on Friday at the Prime Ministry under chairmanship of Prime Minister Ahmed Hachani. It examined a draft law amending a set of provisions in the Penal Code (Article 96) as well as several other draft decrees. The PM underlined that "the State is determined to consolidate its social role and eradicate precariousness, particularly among economic actors as well as provide greater support for various age groups.» The draft law amending certain provisions of the Penal Code (Article 96) was examined as part of the legislative reforms aimed at improving the business climate, protecting public officials and establishing balance between the goals of the penal policy in combating administrative and financial corruption. Justice Minister, Leila Jaffel, stressed the need to develop a comprehensive legal framework which aims at prosecuting those involved in administrative and financial corruption. The council of ministers also examined other draft decrees, including: - A draft decree supplementing Decree No. 250 of 2001 of May 28, 2001 related to the composition of the National Tax Council. - A draft decree amending and supplementing Decree No. 545 of 2023 of July 20, 2023 setting the conditions and procedures to benefit from the State's coverage of the interest rate differential on seasonal loans for grain crops, limited to three points compared to the market interest rate, for loans granted by banks from their resources to small farmers in the grain sector. The meeting also focused on several draft decrees related to kindergartens and summer camps. Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse