Iran swears in its tenth parliament

Iran swears in its tenth parliament
By Catherine Hardy with AFP, Reuters
Share this articleComments
Share this articleClose Button
Copy/paste the article video embed link below:Copy to clipboardCopied

Independent counting suggests this will be the first parliament in more than 20 years with neither a conservative nor reformist majority.

What is happening?

ADVERTISEMENT

Iran has opened its tenth parliament.

Newly-elected members of the 290-seat chamber took the oath of office as the assembly met on Saturday.

Senior government officials attended the ceremony.

Iran’s new parliament in four

  • 60% of MPs are first-timers
  • They will serve until May 27, 2020
  • 12% aged 40 and under (60% of Iranians are under 30)
  • 6% (17) are women (60% of Iranian university students are female.) Iran’sNew ParliamentOpens https://t.co/qdH8d3ednPpic.twitter.com/iwJNJm8cqw

— Iran Front Page (@IranFrontPage) May 28, 2016

Independent counting suggests this will be the first parliament in more than 20 years with neither a conservative nor reformist majority.

Commentators think this could lead to continual political horse-trading in the vote.

The contest to elect a speaker, one of parliament’s first tasks, is seen as an early test.

Choosing a speaker

The speaker will be chosen in an election on Sunday. Two main figures – former speaker Ali Larijani and prominent reformist Mohammed Reza Aref are in the running.

What is the background?

Elected in votes in February and April, the 290-seat assembly replaces one dominated by hardliners suspicious of the West.

There were attempts to curb President Hassan Rouhani’s plans to liberalise the economy and increase productivity.

Was President Rouhani there?

Yes.

He delivered a speech focusing on reforms, the economy and fighting unemployment.

PresidentHassanRouhani</a>: People Are for a Strong, Effective Parliament<a href="https://t.co/0mXJGHAjYI">https://t.co/0mXJGHAjYI</a> <a href="https://t.co/i7txAY6Vl7">pic.twitter.com/i7txAY6Vl7</a></p>&mdash; Iran Front Page (IranFrontPage) May 28, 2016

“All our programmes are aimed at protecting our people and our society against poverty and unemployment,” he said.

“Over the past two decades, there is no country that has managed to reach a proper economic growth and proper employment without interacting with the world.”

“Today, we are happy that others are not taking our share in OPEC. Soon, we will regain our previous oil export quota,” Rouhani explained, adding that Iran would aim for an economic growth of eight percent.

He estimates the country will need 30 to 50 billion dollars of inward investment to reach an 8% growth threshold.

The figure last year was 1%.

Share this articleComments

You might also like

G7 allies warn Iran not to provide Russia with ballistic missiles for use in Ukraine

Iran ramps up executions as Western countries divert focus towards Gaza

Iranians prepare for elections on Friday amid widespread fear and discontent