Federal Parliament (Belgium)

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The Palace of the Nation (French Palais de la Nation , Netherland Paleis der Natie ), seat of the Federal Parliament

The Federal Parliament ( Dutch Federaal Parlement , French Parlement fédéral ) is the legislative body of Belgium alongside the King at the federal level . It is made up of two chambers : a lower house , the Chamber of Deputies , and an upper house , the Senate .

The term “Federal Parliament” as such is not an official name. In fact, the Constitution only says: “The federal legislative power is exercised jointly by the King, the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate” (Art. 36 of the Constitution). In some cases, however, the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate come together into a single body, referred to in the Constitution as the “united chambers”.

The parliament building

Both the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate have been located in the Palace of the Nation (French: Palais de la Nation , Dutch: Paleis der Natie ) since 1830 . The building that initially housed the Sovereign Council of Brabant is located in Brussels in the former Brabantstraat , which is now called Rue de la loi / Wetstraat . Directly opposite is the Warandepark , which is also called the Royal City Park. The building was designed and built in the neoclassical style between 1778 and 1783 by Barnabé Guimard and Philippe-Jerôme Sandrié .

The united chambers

The bicameral system in Belgium has one exception: in some cases, which are exhaustively listed in the constitution, the Chamber of Deputies and Senate meet together as so-called "united chambers". These cases mainly concern the appointment of the head of state (similar to the German Federal Assembly ).

The constitution provides: "If the king dies, the chambers shall meet without a convocation no later than the tenth day after his death". This meeting happens by law. If the chambers have already been dissolved, the old chambers come together again. After the king's death, there are three options:

  • The heir to the throne is of legal age : The heir to the throne also comes from the physical and legitimate line of King Leopold I from the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha . The primogeniture (firstborn) decides the order of the children of the deceased king. Gender has been irrelevant since a 1991 constitutional amendment. In order to ascend the throne, the aspirant must take the constitutional oath before the united chambers.
  • The heir to the throne is a minor : in this case the united chamber provides guardianship and appoints a regent . The regent must also take the constitutional oath before them.
  • There is no heir to the throne : if the late king was the last descendant of King Leopold I (which is only hypothetical today), he could propose a third heir to the throne to the two chambers. He can only become king with a two-thirds majority in the Chamber of Deputies and Senate. If no heir to the throne has been proposed, the throne is considered vacant.

If the throne is vacant, the “jointly advisory chambers” will first ensure a reign. They will then be automatically dissolved and re-staffed within two months after appropriate elections. Only then can they meet again and choose a new king.

In the end, two cases should be mentioned that also require a joint decision by the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate:

  • The king wants to become head of state of another state : For this he needs a two-thirds majority in both chambers.
  • The king is for incapable of governing are explained : Located king of the impossibility to rule (for example, because he has become seriously ill.), The Minister appointed a chambers, having had this inability stated. The combined chambers then provide guardianship and regency.

History: The National Congress

The congress column in Brussels

The federal parliament has its origins in the Belgian Revolution in 1830. The provisional government, which consisted of nine members, had proclaimed the independence of the Belgian provinces from the former United Kingdom of the Netherlands on October 4, 1830 . While the military positions were consolidating and efforts were made to reach a ceasefire, elections for a “ national congress” had taken place across Belgium on November 3rd . However, only a good 46,000 taxpaying or academic male citizens over 25 years of age were eligible to vote . H. about one percent of the population. The turnout was 75 percent. The National Congress met for the first time on November 10th and on November 18th confirmed the independence of the Belgian state, which had been declared on October 4th. An exception was Luxembourg, which was a member of the German Confederation . The liberal aristocrat Erasme Louis Surlet de Chokier was elected as the first chairman .

The main task of the National Congress was the drafting of a Belgian constitution, which was passed on February 7, 1831. It was also he who made the choice to establish a monarchy for the young nation. On July 21, 1831, Leopold I was the first king of the Belgians to take the constitutional oath before the National Congress.

The National Congress lasted until the election of the first parliament on September 8, 1831, which was followed by the establishment of the first Chamber of Deputies and the first Senate. The congress column in Brussels ( Dutch Congreskolom , French Colonne du Congrès ), which was built by Joseph Poelaert between 1850 and 1859 , is intended to commemorate the National Congress.

See also

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ See L. Somerhausen et W. van den Steene, Le Palais de la Nation , Bruxelles, Sénat de Belgique, 1982.
  2. ↑ See M. Uyttendaele, Précis de droit constitutionnel belge. Regards sur un système institutionnel paradoxal , 3e éd., Bruxelles, Bruylant, 2005, p. 782 ff.
  3. ↑ Article 90 of the Constitution.
  4. ↑ Article 85 of the Constitution
  5. ↑ Article 91 of the Constitution.
  6. ↑ Art. 92 and 94 of the Constitution.
  7. ↑ Article 86 of the Constitution.
  8. ↑ Article 95 of the Constitution.
  9. ↑ Article 87 of the Constitution.
  10. ↑ Article 93 of the Constitution.
  11. ↑ On the history of the Belgian Revolution and the National Congress, see E. Witte, E. Gubin, JP. Nandrin et G. Deneckere, Nouvelle histoire de Belgique. Volume 1: 1830-1905 , Bruxelles, Editions Complexe, 2005, esp. P. 60 ff .; see also Th. Juste, Histoire du Congrès national de Belgique, ou de la fondation de la monarchie , t. II, Bruxelles, A. Lacroix Van Meenen et Cie., 1861, accessible to the public domain .
  12. ↑ See the classic F. Stappaerts, La colonne du Congrès à Bruxelles: notice historique et descriptive du monument , Bruxelles, Typo. Vve J. Van Buggenhoudt, 1860, accessible to the public domain .