Small request (Germany)

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A small question is a question that a member of parliament poses to the executive , for example a member of the Bundestag, to the government . It is an instrument of parliamentary control .

In German parliaments, there are minor questions in the Bundestag and in the state parliaments , which are addressed to the respective federal or state government . The deadlines for replies by the government are between eight days (Hamburg) and six weeks (Hesse), whereby as a rule no extensive research is carried out. The answers are based on the facts currently available to the government. Small inquiries are mainly an instrument of the opposition, which also wants to control the respective government; often she demands accountability for certain actions or she wants reasons why certain measures were not taken. In addition, she can express the particular interests of her electorate, which is ostensibly for election tactical motives. The big question is more extensive, asks for a more detailed answer and often has to be requested by a political group .

Small inquiries in the German Bundestag

The Bundestag regulates the minor question in Section 104 of the Rules of Procedure (GO-BT). Another proof is § 75 Abs. 3 GO-BT, in the small inquiries as templates i. S. d. § 76 GO-BT to be defined. They must be signed by a parliamentary group or by five percent of the members of the Bundestag. The questions must be submitted to the President of the Bundestag and answered in writing within 14 days. This deadline can be extended in accordance with Section 104 (2) GO-BT in agreement with the questioner.

By the end of the 18th legislative period in 2017, 23,087 small inquiries had been sent to the federal government across all legislative periods. While only 355 small inquiries were made in the 1st legislative period, the previous high of 3,953 such inquiries was reached in the 18th legislative period. Most of the minor inquiries that were made in the 18th legislative period concerned the Federal Ministry of the Interior, which accounted for 986 such inquiries. With 2,184 small inquiries, the Left Party in the Bundestag used this instrument of parliamentary control most frequently during that legislative period, followed by the Bundestag faction Bündnis 90 / Die Grünen with 1,723 small inquiries.

Both the minor inquiries and the answers to them are published as Bundestag printed matter. There are no obstacles to such a publication.

The Federal Constitutional Court ruled in July 2009 that the Federal Government had to answer small questions comprehensively. This is the only way for the Bundestag to perform its task of parliamentary control effectively.

Small inquiries in the German state parliaments

Baden-Württemberg

In Baden-Württemberg, the minor inquiry is regulated in Section 61 of the rules of procedure of the Baden-Württemberg state parliament . It can be submitted by any MEP and may contain a maximum of 10 questions. The answer and the request are forwarded to all members of parliament. If there is no written answer within three weeks, the request will be placed on the agenda of the next state parliament session. According to Section 61a of the Rules of Procedure, the same deadline applies to letters to ministries as to minor questions, but they are only put on the agenda at the request of the questioner.

Bavaria

The Rules of Procedure of the Bavarian State Parliament only generally recognize "Written inquiries", including from individual Members of Parliament, according to Section 71. If these are not answered within four weeks, the questioner can choose whether or not the President of the State Parliament should complain according to Section 72 (1) sentence 2 of the Rules of Procedure but the request for the next appointment should be made as a request in plenary. The answer to the written question will only be published as printed matter in accordance with Section 72 (2) of the Rules of Procedure if the person making the request has already requested this when submitting the question.

Berlin

The minor question was regulated in Section 50 of the Rules of Procedure of the Berlin House of Representatives and was replaced by the "written question" in the same provision. It can be submitted by individual representatives and should be answered by the Senate within three weeks. The question and answer will be published by the President of the House of Representatives.

Brandenburg

The minor inquiry is regulated in Brandenburg in § 58 of the rules of procedure of the Landtag Brandenburg and can also be made by individual members. She is acc. The state government must respond to Section 58 (3) sentence 2 within four weeks . If this period is exceeded, it can be extended in accordance with Section 59 of the Rules of Procedure with the consent of the questioner, otherwise a discussion will take place in plenary. The answers to the small questions are distributed as state parliament printed matter in accordance with Section 58 (4).

Bremen

In the Bremen citizenship, the small request is only available to several members of parliament from the size of a parliamentary group according to Section 29 (2) of the Rules of Procedure. The Senate must respond within five weeks. The questioners can apply for a reduction of the deadline to three weeks with special justification. Conversely, the Senate can apply for an extension of the deadline.

Hamburg

The small inquiry is regulated in Hamburg in § 19 of the rules of procedure of the Hamburg citizenship . The Senate has eight days to respond to these. It will then be distributed as a printed matter.

Hesse

The legal basis for the minor inquiry, including by individual members of the State of Hesse, is Section 35 of the Rules of Procedure of the Hessian State Parliament (GOHLT). According to Section 35 (3) GOHLT, the deadline for answering is six weeks with the obligation to submit an interim report stating the reasons for the non-compliance. As a rule, the state government does not meet this deadline . According to the rules of procedure, small inquiries about matters of only local interest are expressly inadmissible.

Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania

The legal basis for the minor inquiry, also by individual members of parliament in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, is Section 64 of the Rules of Procedure of the Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania State Parliament . According to Section 64 (1) of the Rules of Procedure, the deadline for answering is only ten working days. The small question may contain a maximum of ten questions with three sub-questions each. If the request is not answered in due time, it must be placed on the agenda of the next parliamentary session at the request of the questioner.

Lower Saxony

The rules of procedure of the Lower Saxony state parliament recognize two types of small questions in Lower Saxony for all members , namely in § 46 Small questions for written answers and in § 47: Small questions for Question Time. The rules of procedure do not contain any special deadlines for answering or restrictions on the right to ask questions.

North Rhine-Westphalia

The small inquiries in North Rhine-Westphalia are regulated in § 88 of the rules of procedure of the state parliament of North Rhine-Westphalia . The state government's approach is in accordance with Section 30 of the rules of procedure of the state government of North Rhine-Westphalia . A period of four weeks is provided for answering a small inquiry. Both questions and answers are printed and distributed. A small inquiry can contain a maximum of 5 sub-questions.

Rhineland-Palatinate

Small inquiries as a right of every member of the state parliament are regulated in § 97 of the rules of procedure of the Rhineland-Palatinate state parliament . They should be answered within three weeks, in exceptional cases this period can be extended to six weeks. If there is no answer, the question can be placed on the agenda of the next parliamentary session for an oral answer. A small question can contain a maximum of seven individual questions.

Saarland

Inquiries are referred to in Section XI, Section 58 of the Rules of Procedure of the Saarland State Parliament . They are not listed as a 'small request' but as a request . There is also a 'major question' (Section XI, Section 59 of the Rules of Procedure of the Saarland Landtag), which, in contrast to the minor question, cannot be made by individual members, but only by parliamentary groups or at least 5 members together. The question must be submitted in writing to the President of the State Parliament and can be asked by any member. The question is addressed to the executive (government) and is intended to expressly identify facts to which an answer is required. If the conditions are not met, the request can be rejected by the President of the State Parliament. If the request meets the criteria, it is sent by the President of the State Parliament to the Members of Parliament and the Members of the Government. As soon as the government has received its reply, it will be sent to the MPs. If there is no response from the government within a period of two weeks, the applicant will be informed accordingly. He then has the opportunity to put the request on the agenda of the next parliamentary session. This requires an application from the questioner.

Saxony

The small inquiries in Saxony are regulated in § 56 of the rules of procedure of the Saxon state parliament . After that, each member of parliament can ask small questions with up to 5 individual questions. If the question is not answered within four weeks, the President shall, at the request of the questioner, place the question on the next agenda of the state parliament. Both questions and answers are printed and distributed.

Saxony-Anhalt

The small questions to be answered in writing in Saxony-Anhalt are regulated in Section 44 of the rules of procedure of the State Parliament of Saxony-Anhalt . After that, every MP can ask small questions. If the question is not answered within one month, the President places the question on the next agenda of the state parliament, unless the questioner waives it. The answer will be distributed as a printed matter in the state parliament. There are also small questions for Question Time under Section 45 of the Rules of Procedure.

Schleswig-Holstein

Small inquiries are regulated in § 36 of the rules of procedure of the Schleswig-Holstein state parliament . The questions must be short and factual and may only relate to one subject. They must be answered in writing within two weeks. If the small question is not answered within the set deadline, the President of the Landtag must, at the request of the questioner, put it on the agenda of the next session of the Landtag. Small questions and the answers are sent to the MPs.

They are publicly accessible via the state parliament information system.

Thuringia

The small inquiries in Thuringia are regulated in § 90 of the rules of procedure of the Thuringian state parliament . After that, every MP can ask small questions. The inquiries may only relate to a specific issue and must be formulated in such a way that they can be answered briefly by the state government. If the question is not answered within six weeks, the President shall, at the request of the questioner, place the question on the next agenda of the state parliament. Both questions and answers are printed and distributed.

See also

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Manfred G. Schmidt : The political system of Germany. License issue for the Federal Agency for Civic Education . CH Beck , Bonn 2007, ISBN 978-3-89331-741-7 , pp. 155f.
  2. ^ German Bundestag : Data Handbook on the History of the German Bundestag 1949 to 1999 , p. 2639.
  3. ↑ German Bundestag : Data Handbook on the History of the German Bundestag 1990 to 2010 , Chapter 11.1 “Inquiries”, pp. 2–5.
  4. ↑ German Bundestag : Data Handbook on the History of the German Bundestag 1990 to 2010 , Chapter 11.1 "Inquiries", p. 12.
  5. ↑ German Bundestag : Data Handbook on the History of the German Bundestag 1990 to 2010 , Chapter 11.1 "Inquiries", p. 5.
  6. ↑ See the information provided by the Bundestag on the discussion page .
  7. ↑ faz.net August 10, 2019 / Wiebke Becker: Small inquiries, big
  8. ^ Judgment of July 1, 2009 - 2 BvE 5/06 ( Second Senate )
  9. ↑ Legal basis: Rules of Procedure of the Baden-Württemberg State Parliament, accessed on June 20, 2012
  10. ↑ Legal basis (side column): Rules of Procedure of the Bavarian State Parliament, accessed on June 20, 2012
  11. ↑ Legal basis: Rules of Procedure of the Berlin House of Representatives ( Memento of the original dated September 24, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Accessed April 28, 2015 @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.parlament-berlin.de
  12. ↑ Basics of parliamentary work: Rules of Procedure of the Brandenburg State Parliament, accessed on June 20, 2012
  13. ↑ Rules of Procedure of the Bremen Citizenship Accessed on June 20, 2012
  14. ↑ Rules of Procedure of the Hamburg Parliament, accessed on June 20, 2012
  15. ↑ Rules of Procedure of the Hessian State Parliament ( Memento of the original dated July 6, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Accessed June 20, 2012 @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.hessischer-landtag.de
  16. ↑ Legal basis: Rules of Procedure of the Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania State Parliament, accessed on June 20, 2012
  17. ↑ Legal provisions: Rules of Procedure of the Lower Saxony State Parliament, accessed on June 20, 2012
  18. ↑ Rules of Procedure of the State Parliament of North Rhine-Westphalia, retrieved on June 20, 2012
  19. ↑ Legal basis: Rules of Procedure of the Rhineland-Palatinate State Parliament, accessed on June 20, 2012
  20. ↑ Laws: Rules of Procedure of the Saarland State Parliament  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Accessed June 20, 2012@1@ 2Template: Toter Link / www.landtag-saarland.de  
  21. ↑ Rules of Procedure of the Saxon State Parliament, accessed on June 20, 2012
  22. ↑ Legal basis: Rules of Procedure of the State Parliament of Saxony-Anhalt ( Memento of the original from March 28, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Accessed June 20, 2012 @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.landtag.sachsen-anhalt.de
  23. ↑ Rules of Procedure of the Schleswig-Holstein State Parliament of February 8, 1991, Section 36, accessed November 3, 2011
  24. ↑ - ( Memento of the original from November 10, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.landtag.ltsh.de
  25. ↑ Rules of Procedure of the Thuringian State Parliament ( Memento of the original from June 27, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Accessed June 20, 2012 @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.thueringer-landtag.de