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Increasing members’ active participation in the work of the Parliamentary Assembly

Doc. 16293: compendium of written amendments | Doc. 16293 | 20/11/2025 | Provisional version

Compendium index

Amendment 1 Amendment 2

Caption: AdoptedRejectedWithdrawnNo electronic votes

ADraft Resolution

1Since its establishment, the Parliamentary Assembly has embodied a pioneering vision: placing parliamentarians at the heart of a multilateral organisation dedicated to the protection of human rights, democracy and the rule of law. At a time when both multilateralism and democracy are under strain, active commitment by its members is more crucial than ever to preserve the Assembly’s authority and strengthen its role as a guardian of Europe’s shared values.
2The Assembly recognises the unique value of the dual mandate of its members, as both national legislators and members of a pan‑European forum, enabling them to enrich European debates and return home as ambassadors of the Council of Europe. It recalls that this dual mandate is both a strength and a challenge, requiring careful organisation and support by political groups and national parliaments. Participation is not merely a procedural formality but a political responsibility. It lends legitimacy to the decisions of the Assembly, reflects the democratic will of Europe’s citizens, and ensures that the Assembly remains responsive, effective, and representative.
3Building on past reforms and extensive recent consultations, the Assembly considers that its internal procedures and practices must evolve towards a framework that inspires purpose, fosters ownership, recognises effort, ensures real impact, promotes equality and fairness and creates the conditions for engaged and effective participation – thereby enabling all members to fulfil their full potential in the work of the Assembly. The Assembly also reaffirms the importance of ensuring that its activities remain accessible and inclusive, while safeguarding high standards of political deliberation.
4Consequently, the Assembly decides, as a central and forward-looking reform, to strengthen institutional capacity and the pertinence of its work by creating the possibility for its Bureau to establish special committees. This measure will provide flexibility and ensure that priority or cross‑cutting challenges can be addressed with dedicated parliamentary focus. Hence, the Assembly decides, after Rule 50 of the Rules of Procedure, to insert the following provision:
4.1“Rule 51 – Special committees”
4.21. The Bureau of the Assembly may establish up to two special committees at any given time, each with a clear, time-limited mandate addressing priority or transversal issues requiring focused parliamentary consideration.
4.32. Each special committee shall be established for a mandate of one year, which may be renewed once by a decision of the Bureau.
4.43. The mandate, composition, duration, and specific tasks of each special committee shall be defined by the Bureau upon its establishment.
4.54. Special committees shall submit their reports and recommendations within the timeframe set by the Bureau and shall automatically cease to exist upon completion of their mandate, the expiry of the one-year period, or at the end of the renewal period.
4.65. Members of special committees shall be nominated by the Bureau, taking into account political, geographical, and gender balance.
4.76. Special committees shall operate under the general rules applicable to general committees, unless otherwise specified by the Bureau.
4.87. Members serving on special committees shall be exempt from the membership limitation set forth in Rule 44.6.”
5To add dynamism to its work and debates, the Assembly decides to:
5.1introduce a “blue card question” mechanism allowing direct, concise questions from rapporteurs and political group speakers to other speakers during debates. Hence, the Assembly decides, after Rule 37 of the Rules of Procedure, to insert the following paragraph:
5.2“During a debate, the President may give the floor to the rapporteur(s) and to members speaking on behalf of their political groups who indicate, by raising a blue card, their intention to ask another member not belonging to the same political group, in response to that member’s speech, a question lasting no more than thirty seconds, directly related to the speech and the subject of the debate. The member to whom the question is put may respond within the same time limit. The rapporteur(s) may make use of at most two blue cards per debate, and members speaking on behalf of their political groups one blue card per debate. This procedure shall not apply to exchanges with guest speakers.”;
5.3while valuing the contribution of its networks in promoting dialogue and co-operation on important themes, invite the Bureau to review the Assembly’s list of networks on a regular basis to ensure that they remain focused on priority objectives, are adequately resourced, and can evolve or be phased out once their tasks have been fulfilled;
5.4require from guest speakers to respond to questions from members of the Assembly, so as to ensure a genuine and fruitful exchange within the remit of the Council of Europe;
5.5encourage opportunities for meaningful exchanges with representatives of the Council of Europe and its bodies, such as the European Court of Human Rights, the Commissioner for Human Rights, the European Commission for Democracy through Law (Venice Commission), expert bodies, and steering committees within the Council of Europe or its institutions, depending on the subject matter. The aim should be genuine co-operation and constructive dialogue, rather than interactions of a purely formal or procedural nature.
6As regards enhancing participation by a higher number of its members, the Assembly:
6.1welcomes the Bureau’s recent practice of reducing speaking time from three to two minutes for registered speakers while proposing to preserve longer time for political group representatives. It further decides, in the additional provisions relating to Assembly debates, concerning the speaking time, to:
6.1.1 replace paragraph 1 with the following paragraph:
6.1.1.1“Speakers registered for a debate, including youth rapporteurs, shall have three minutes’ speaking time, unless the Bureau decides at the start of the part-session, owing to a high number of registered speakers for a particular debate, to reduce speaking time for that debate to two minutes. Speakers on behalf of the political groups shall have three minutes’ speaking time.”;
6.1.2add, at the end of paragraph 4, the following words:
6.1.2.1“or two minutes if the speaking time has been reduced to two minutes for the other speakers.”;
6.2considers that, to ensure orderly proceedings and equitable opportunities for all members, one possible way is to automatically cut the microphone once a speaker has reached the time limit;
6.3decides to recognise consistent engagement in voting by moving the ten members who have participated in the highest number of votes in plenary up seven positions on the lists of speakers. It therefore decides to replace, in the additional provisions relating to Assembly debates, concerning the order of speakers, in paragraph 10, the word “three” with the word “seven”;
6.4decides to set limits on simultaneous rapporteurships held by members and per committee. It therefore decides to replace, in Rule 50.1 of the Rules of Procedure, the sentence “A member of the Assembly who is simultaneously rapporteur for five reports or opinions under preparation, on behalf of one or more committees, may not be appointed rapporteur.” with the following text:

20 November 2025

Tabled by the Committee on Rules, Ethics and Immunities

In the draft resolution, paragraph 6.4, replace the last sentence with the following sentences:

"The Assembly also decides to replace the first sentence of Rule 50.7 as follows: "Committees may appoint one or more general rapporteurs, whose terms of reference they shall determine beforehand, with no more than four general rapporteurs per committee. A chairperson of a committee may not simultaneously hold the position of general rapporteur of that committee.";"

Explanatory note

The amendment aims at avoiding an incoherence in the Rules, as the initial paragraph failed to amend Rule 50.7, which is the relevant Rule.

6.4.1“No member may be appointed to prepare more than three reports simultaneously, excluding reports prepared in the Monitoring Committee, under the urgent procedure, opinions on the reports of other committees and those for which the chairperson of a committee is required to act as rapporteur. No member may hold more than one general or youth rapporteurship at any one time. No committee may have more than four general rapporteurs at once.”;
6.5entrusts the Secretary General of the Assembly, on the basis of guidelines approved by the Bureau of the Assembly, with the implementation of Resolution 2615 (2025) “Promoting inclusive participation in parliamentary life: gender equality, accessibility and inclusive policies”, including support for limited, exceptional online attendance in committee work for pregnant members, members caring for children under the age of three, or facing health and caregiving challenges.
7As regards transparency and the optimisation of its order of business, the Assembly decides:
7.1that the provisional lists of speakers be published at least twelve hours before the debate, except under urgent procedures. It therefore decides, in the additional provisions relating to Assembly debates, concerning the list of speakers, in paragraph 4, after the first sentence, to insert the following sentence:

20 November 2025

Tabled by the Committee on Rules, Ethics and Immunities

In the draft resolution, replace paragraph 7.1 with the following paragraph:

"to improve the time limit for distributing lists of speakers to members and, in the additional provisions relating to Assembly debates, concerning the list of speakers, to replace paragraph 4 with the following paragraph: "The list of speakers for a debate taking place during a morning sitting shall be closed at 4.00 p.m. on the previous day, and for a debate taking place during an afternoon sitting at 9.00 a.m. the same day";"

Explanatory note

The amendment aims to specify the deadlines for closing registrations on the list of speakers, in order to allow for faster distribution of these lists and to give registered members more time to prepare their speeches.

7.1.1“The provisional list of speakers for a debate, except for a debate under the urgent procedure, shall be published at least twelve hours before the opening of the sitting in which that debate takes place.”;
7.2to debate the progress report of the Monitoring Committee once every two years, aligning its duration with that of the typical term of office of the committee chairperson. It therefore decides to amend Resolution 1115 (1997), as modified, by replacing in paragraph 15 the words “once a year” with the words “once every two years”;
7.3that the chairperson or, in his or her absence, a vice-chairperson of the Committee on the Election of Judges to the European Court of Human Rights be invited, during the debate on the Bureau’s progress report, to make a brief oral intervention in order to present the committee’s recommendation on the list of candidates submitted by a member State for the post of judge.
8As regards visibility, support and outreach, the Assembly resolves to:
8.1further develop and maintain pace-apps, turning it into a dedicated mobile application and member portal, offering real-time information on debates, lists of speakers, procedures, voting and resources for members;
8.2further improve public visibility and communication of its work, including by making available tools more known, using concise media-friendly report titles, enhanced press and social media outreach, and clearer online presentation on the Council of Europe website;
8.3expand induction, mentoring, and training programmes for new members, including handbooks, especially drawing on the Assembly handbook entitled “National parliaments as guarantors of human rights in Europe”, briefings, digital tools, and peer support initiatives;
8.4facilitate joint committee meetings, hearings, and best-practice exchanges, promoting collaborative and transversal work for greater coherence and impact;
8.5collect and analyse data on travel connections to Strasbourg, advocating for improved public transport and access for members.
9The Assembly invites national parliaments to support and facilitate members’ participation in its work by:
9.1ensuring members attend plenary sittings and committee meetings regularly and taking appropriate measures to promote active participation;
9.2treating Assembly work as an integral component of their members’ parliamentary service and providing all necessary practical and political support;
9.3facilitating “pairing agreements” and similar co-operation among parliamentary groups belonging to the majority and the opposition to ease attendance at sessions and committee meetings;
9.4aiming at aligning national parliamentary calendars and meetings of other international parliamentary bodies with Assembly sessions;
9.5encouraging and enhancing internal reporting of Assembly activities by supporting parliamentary TV, briefings, newsletters, and plenary debates in national chambers;
9.6fostering co-operation and information exchange between national parliamentary committees and Assembly committees, including joint hearings and exchange opportunities for officials;
9.7facilitating parliamentary staff study visits and learning opportunities on the Assembly and on the Council of Europe in general;
9.8monitoring member attendance and working constructively to restore regular participation where needed.
10The Assembly decides that the amendments to the Rules of Procedure set out in this resolution shall enter into force at the opening of the January 2026 part-session.