General Secretary To Lam: the sixteenth National Assembly must overhaul legislative work to foster development.

In his remarks at the Opening Session of the First Session of the Sixteenth National Assembly on the morning of 6 April 2026, General Secretary To Lam urged the Sixteenth National Assembly to vigorously reform legislative work and to build, with determination, a modern, unified, stable, feasible legal system that creates conditions for development. He said the National Assembly should raise its capacity to institutionalize and concretize the Party’s resolutions into policies and laws, forming a solid legal framework to carry out the tasks of economic and social development for the 2026–2031 period and beyond.

General Secretary To Lam acknowledged and valued the contributions of the National Assembly, the deputies of the XV National Assembly, and relevant committees. He said the session marks an important step in reorganizing state institutions in line with the Constitution, while also focusing on institutionalizing the XIV Party Congress’s resolutions into policy and law to provide the legal and institutional foundation for rapid, sustainable development based on science and technology, innovation, and the people’s aspirations.

He emphasized that in a world rapidly changing due to AI development, big data, digital technology, and related advances, nations that proactively reform institutions, unleash creative energy, and mobilize resources across society will rise and develop. He noted that the XIV Congress set targets through 2030 with a vision to 2045, and said the National Assembly must renew its thinking, unleash resources, and maximize the strength of national unity while performing its constitutional duties more effectively.

Four major tasks for the Sixteenth National Assembly

1) Strengthen legal foundations for development

General Secretary To Lam said the National Assembly must raise its capacity to institutionalize and concretize the Party’s resolutions into policy and law, and create a robust legal framework to implement development tasks for 2026–2031 and beyond. He said the legal system should serve as a foundation for development, a tool to protect human rights and civil rights, and a driver of innovation and productive forces.

He noted that although progress has been made, overlaps, inconsistencies, unclear provisions, and misalignment with reality persist, increasing compliance costs and hindering progress. He called for a comprehensive review to overhaul the national legal framework, address “overlapping laws” and sub-legal documents, and ensure laws are implementable, understandable, and easy to apply by citizens, enterprises, and authorities.

2) Make oversight more substantive and result-oriented

He said the National Assembly should elevate parliamentary oversight to be substantive, incisive, and result-oriented. Oversight, he said, should go beyond identifying deficiencies by improving governance, correcting course, signaling risks early, and prompting timely action.

He added that oversight should focus on major issues, critical sectors, and bottlenecks, ensure effective implementation of major Party directives, law enforcement, resource use, public asset management, and anti-corruption measures, and link oversight to clear responsibilities, deadlines, outputs, and measurable results. He said oversight should use data, evidence, and indicators, and harmonize with other state control mechanisms to enable action.

3) Decide major national issues with foresight and timeliness

General Secretary To Lam said the Assembly must strengthen political will and foresight when deciding major national issues for long-term benefit. He said deputies should decide not only correctly but also promptly to avoid missing strategic opportunities.

He said decisions on the economy, budgets, public investment, national programs, and major projects require comprehensive, scientific, and cautious consideration, but should not be delayed. He urged deputies to weigh impacts on national interests and the public good while ensuring timely action.

4) Reform the organization and operations of the National Assembly

He called for continued reform of the National Assembly’s organization and operations toward modern, professional, citizen-centered, practical, and policy-responsive functioning. He said the Assembly must adapt to a rapidly changing world by increasing responsiveness, expanding session formats, and leveraging digital technology and online platforms to improve timeliness and policy decision-making.

He said the Assembly should enhance the capacity of individual deputies, strengthen the role of representative groups to connect with voters, and ensure deputies have political integrity, professional expertise, critical thinking, and the ability to faithfully convey the people’s voice to the chamber. He also said the National Assembly should stay closer to the people, broaden channels for public input, and maintain transparency and accountability, building a digital, modern, intelligent Parliament grounded in and responsive to the people.

Expected focus and closing message

General Secretary To Lam said the XVI National Assembly begins with a heavy responsibility. He said he believes and expects each deputy to continually strengthen political resolve, raise capacity and responsibility, stay close to the people, understand and faithfully reflect their will, and place national interests above all in every decision. He described this as the core quality of a people’s representative in a new era.

He concluded by expressing confidence in the 80-year tradition of Vietnam’s National Assembly and the unity of the Party, government, and political system to realize the aspiration for a peaceful, independent, prosperous, and progressive Vietnam.