PARLIAMENT'S SERVICES
The Speaker of Parliament presides over all the services assisted by the Secretary General. The services of the Parliament are organized into Directorates for the most efficient support of its work. The three most important sectors include: a) the Service of Parliamentary Processes, b) the Administrative Services and c) the Scientific Service.
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a) the Service of Parliamentary Processes,
b) the Administrative Services and
c) the Scientific Service.
A. Service of Parliamentary Processes
The four Directorates which form the Service of Parliamentary Processes are the following:
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a) the Directorate of Legislation. This is
responsible for the collection, printing and
circulation of all Parliament's documents which
are related to legislation and assists the legislative work in all possible ways.
b) the Directorate of Parliamentary Control. This is responsible for receiving, printing and circulating all documents related to the parliamentary control. In short, it ascertains the administrative background for the exercise of parliamentary control.
c) the Directorate for Stenographic Services. This takes down with precision and presents in a unified text all that is being said and all that takes place in the Parliament's sittings.
d) the Directorate for the Publication of the Minutes. This is responsible for the collection of Parliament's minutes and takes cares of their printing and ratification by Parliament. It takes all necessary steps for the publication of the minutes and prepares detailed index.
The Directorate of Legislation also includes the Document Department which is responsible for the circulation of any document published by Parliament or which is relates to its work so that they also become accessible to the public.
B. The Administrative Services
This consists of two Directorates :
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a) the Administrative Directorate. This ensures the provision of all material
and technical requirements for the proper function of Parliament's services. It
also responsible for the service relations of the Members with Parliament, it
keeps the records and supervises Parliament's staff.
b) the Directorate of Technical Services. This is responsible for the study, implementation, supervision and maintenance of all works necessary for the function of Parliament.
C. The Scientific Service
Parliament's need for specialized scientists that may effectively support it in its functions, led to the creation of a Scientific Service, which is further subdivided in three Directorates. A provision for the creation of such a Service was already in the Constitution of 1975 and the new Standing Orders of 1987.
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a) the Directorate of Studies. This Directorate began functioning in 1988. Its
main task is the legal elaboration of the Bills and Law proposals, the provision
of scientific support to the work of the Members of Parliamemt, the
undertaking of studies and research projects, the representation of Parliament
in international scientific meetings and conferences and the creation of
data-bases pertaining to the Parliament's public business.
b) the Electronic Data-Processing Directorate. This is one of the better equipped services in Greece in terms of computers. It was established in 1988 and is constantly expanding the areas of its involvement.
c) the Library. The Parliament's Library was
established in 1845. Its first Librarian was George
Tertsetis. Today it is one of the richest Parliament
libraries in the world. Because of the great number
of books it contains, at there of located in the
Parliament's building itself, and a part in the
Benaki Library. Particulary important is the
Microfiche Unit which is preoccupied with the
creation of an archive of the daily and periodical
press. There is also a department which takes care
of the large collection of rare publications owned
by the library.
The three Directorates of the Scientific Service are placed under the supervision of the Scientific Council which reports directly to the Speaker..
To complete the picture of the Parliament's Services we must also mention :
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the Directorate of International and Public Relations. This Directorate
prepares the representation of the Hellenic Parliament in International
Organisationsand conferences, monitorsand facilitates the relation ships with
the parliaments of the other countries and is responsible for Parliamen's
public relations with other public institutions in the Country.
the Directorate of Financial Services. The Directorate is responsible for Parliament's budget, the pay-roll and the Parliament's provisions.
To the Speaker answer directly the Legal Council of the Administration, the Speaker's Special Secretariat, the Bureau of Emergency Civil Planning, special counsels and scientific collaborators. There is also a Service for the indexation of old Parliament's minutes, which also answers to the Speaker via the Secretary General.
One should also mention among the Parliament's services the Bureaus of the five Deputy Speakers and of the various political parties.
The Parliament's building also houses a branch of the Hellenic Post Offices, of the National Bank of Greece, of the Telecommunications Organisation and the Olympic Airways, while there is also a bar, a restaurant and a newsstand.