Motion of no confidence

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A motion of censure is a parliamentary initiative by MPs with the aim of withdrawing parliamentary confidence from individual ministers or the entire government or to induce them to resign.

The constitutions of the states (or their federal states) regulate this possibility very differently. For example, at the German federal level, a motion against the Federal Chancellor is only admissible if an opposing candidate is proposed by name (“constructive vote of no confidence ”). Other countries do not have such restrictions (see web links (below) for Austria , Switzerland and Norway).

As a rule, however, there are minimum periods between the application and the vote (a few days) and minimum quotas (around a quarter of the MPs). Such provisions are intended to avoid that hopeless motions (especially from small parties ) are made repeatedly and that the absence of MPs (e.g. due to illness) is exploited in the case of only a narrow majority of the government faction (s).

If the application finds a majority of the MPs present - which in politically stable states only happens in exceptional cases - the minister concerned must be dismissed or the government must resign.

The further course of the procedure depends on the constitution of the respective state, on the powers of the President and, in part, on the rules of procedure of the parliament and on political usage :

  • If the resignation concerns a minister, the head of government generally decides in consultation with a coalition partner .
  • If the government is forced to resign, many constitutions set out further rules, for example:

If the government wins the vote, it will remain in office, but will partially adapt its policy to the situation. There are examples of how to accommodate the opposition in detail, as well as of “tightening the pace”.

A motion of censure is not ineffective even if it is rejected in parliament, because it is usually reported in detail in the mass media . He can weaken the position of a minister or emphasize the political discussion. On the other hand, the accumulation of applications - often against strong ministers - can appear to be politically motivated and thus the sharpest parliamentary “weapon” can lose its effectiveness.

See also

Web links

Wiktionary: Motion of censure  - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations