CHAPTER THREE: DEMOCRACY AND POLITICAL GOVERNANCE to the courts, as this was thought to be easy by 44.5 per cent, as opposed to 43.4 per cent who thought the contrary. 244. The CRM nonetheless notes that there seems to be consensus on the positive advances of the judiciary over the past two years as regards reforms undertaken to facilitate access: low legal costs; legal assistance with automatic payment of advocates‟ fees; rapid handling of legal matters; guidance of the accused; a single office for legal services within each court or tribunal; and access to the case file and to basic legal information via the Internet. The CRM also encourages the government to carry the reform initiated in 1999. 245. Concerning the independence of legislative authorities and the effectiveness of the separation of powers, an analysis of the Algerian Constitution leaves no doubt as to the organic and financial autonomy of the parliament. Working sessions on the ground also confirm this, as each chamber is free to ensure its internal regulation and pass its own budget. 246. Functional independence and the efficiency of the parliament call for several observations and reservations. First, in relation to the APN, it is noted that although the latter has relatively extensive legal scope, this is shared with the executive. Even though this said practice is relatively widespread among states today, the introduction of legislation by Algerian parliamentarians is limited by the Constitution, which provides that it has to be supported by at least 20 deputies in order to be admissible. 247. The President of the Republic may also legislate by means of ordinances and without the prior approval of the APN. Similarly, he may use ordinances to publish a draft finance bill if the latter has not been adopted by the parliament within a period of 75 days of its submission. Legislation passed by the APN must be approved by at least a three-quarters majority of the National Council before promulgation. The President may also request a second reading of the adopted text. In this case, the text is adopted by the APN by a two-thirds majority. The President has the power to dissolve the APN or to call for early elections. Finally, he may submit any matter that he deems appropriate to a referendum, even when it falls within the domain of the law. 248. The second chamber of parliament (the National Council) has no right of initiation in legislative matters. It was to all intents and purposes established to counterbalance the APN through its capacity to temper the voice of national elected members, improve the quality of the work of the second chamber and build political consensus around legislation. This also makes it possible to block the promulgation of legislation deemed to be inopportune, especially given the four-fifths majority required to pass legislation adopted by a simple majority in the first chamber. For this to happen, only one quarter plus one of the members have to vote against the text, or abstain or absent themselves from the voting session. This is obviously quite feasible, considering that the President of the Republic is directly responsible for appointing one third of the members of this chamber. 87