Legislative proposals on the back burner

Members of parliament have a privilege. They can propose laws to improve the living conditions of their fellow citizens or to act in the interests of the country. When parliamentarians make use of their right of initiative, the Chamber's rules of procedure provide for rules that could not be clearer.

Article 63 of the regulations (version dated 26 June 2024) states: "The legislative proposal shall be placed on the agenda of the Commission no later than four weeks after its referral to the Committee." After the four-week deadline has passed, "propositions de loi" must "in any case be placed on the agenda of the following committee meeting". And again one month later, according to the Chamber regulations, "the Commission shall appoint one of its members as rapporteur by majority vote".

But as we all know, paper can be patient. The reality is different. A search on the parliament's website shows this. In mid-July, 58 legislative proposals were pending in the parliamentary committees. This was after the President of Parliament, Claude Wiseler, had called on the parliamentary groups and groupings at the beginning of the new term of office last autumn to clear the decks, i.e. to remove from the agenda any legislative proposals that were no longer topical or had little chance of success.