Malacañang said there was nothing wrong with the House of Representatives approving the proposed P4.5-trillion 2021 national budget on its second reading and postponing session until November 16.

Presidential spokesman Harry Roque made the statement after House Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano made the motion to terminate the period of debates and amendments for House Bill No. 7727 or the proposed 2021 General Appropriations Bill (GAB).

In an interview with CNN Philippines, Roque explained that the move of the House will not delay the passage of the 2021 budget, saying the Senate can now proceed with their deliberations.

"We thank the House for its speedy action in passing the House. As you know, when a proposed law is passed on its second reading, the third reading is ceremonial," he told "The Source" on Wednesday.

"I don't think it will have any effect on passing the budget on time because they have passed it on second reading. It is, for all intents and purposes, approved. They (Senate) just have to wait for the printed copy of the House bill," he added.

According to Roque, what was important was that the House of Representatives has already commenced its deliberation on the Budget, enabling the Senate to act already since it was not a requirement that a bill should be approved on the third and final reading.

"What is important for the Senate to proceed full-blast with its own deliberation is that the House budget should have originated from the House," he said.

"I think now that it's been approved on the second reading, in fact even prior to the approval, we know in the news that the Senate has already commenced with its deliberations on the House Budget," he added.

The Palace official likewise said that the Senate will not be violating the Constitution even if they start their deliberations on the proposed budget prior to the approval of the House bill on the third and final reading.

He added that they are now expecting the proposed budget to be approved.

"For all intents and purposes, the budget has been approved in the House. On the third and final reading, you can no longer move for amendments. That's already the final version of the House bill. It's either you vote for or against the measure," Roque said.

"Now, we're expecting, of course, that as soon as it is printed and brought to the floor for the Third Reading, that all the administration parties, all those supporters of the President, will cast a 'yes' vote," he added.

In a statement, Roque expressed confidence that the Senate will have enough time to finish its deliberations on the proposed 2021 national budget and that it will be passed on time.

"We are confident that the Senate has enough time to finish its deliberations and there should be no reason for delay," he said.

"There is plenty of time between now and November 16 for committee deliberations to continue and come November there will be enough time for plenary deliberations in the Senate," he added.

Political move

Meanwhile, Roque said that Cayetano's motion to terminate the periods of debate and amendments for the proposed 2021 national budget was not illegal, but rather a political move.

"It's not illegal. But I would think it's a very astute political move because it avoided intramurals that could have possibly happened on October 14," he said.

"For what it's worth, you need to have the experience of Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano because he has dealt with the same rules--not only for three terms as a congressman but also as a two-termer senator," he added.

Roque said this would effectively delay Marinduque Representative Lord Allan Velasco's bid for the speakership.

"There was the plenary vote that they would go on break already. That means no one can already question the speakership on October 14. The earliest that they can do that is November 14," he said.

The move of the lawmakers to terminate the said periods and to suspend the session until November 16 came after Velasco accused Cayetano of holding the budget hostage. Cayetano and Velasco are disputing over the position of House Speaker.

The two lawmakers entered into a gentleman's agreement brokered by President Duterte to share the term last year. They agreed that Cayetano would serve as speaker for 15 months while Velasco would take over and serve for 21 months.

After a meeting with President Duterte last week, Cayetano offered to resign as House Speaker. However, this was rejected by his supporters in the lower house.