Modification of various provisions of the Assembly's Rules of Procedure
- Author(s):
- Parliamentary Assembly
- Origin
- Text
adopted by the Standing Committee, acting on behalf of
the Assembly, on 21 November 2025 (see Doc. 16292, report of the Committee on Rules, Ethics and Immunities,
rapporteur: Ms Victoria Tiblom).
1. The actions and decisions of the
Parliamentary Assembly shall be based on clear, consistent and effective
parliamentary rules and procedures. The Assembly has regularly amended
its Rules of Procedure in recent years in order to accommodate changes
in parliamentary practice, clarify the rules and procedures where
their application or interpretation has raised difficulties, or
address specific problems.
2. Having regard to the above considerations and in order to
give effect to
Resolution 2394 (2021) “Gender representation
in the Parliamentary Assembly”, the Assembly must amend its provisions
relating to gender representation. In that resolution, the Assembly
formally undertook to increase the minimum representation of each
sex in its delegations to 40% as from the opening of its 2026 session.
In recognition of the fact that our societies are composed of an
equal number of men and women, the Assembly should strive for an
equal representation of both sexes, as is the case for national
parliamentary delegations to the Inter-Parliamentary Union, while
keeping the minimum representation of each sex at 40%, as agreed
in 2021. It is also appropriate to ensure that these figures are
applied consistently and coherently throughout the work of the Assembly, whether
as concerns the composition of delegations, committees or, where
possible, other representative roles.
3. Pursuant to its
Resolution 2394 (2021),
the Assembly decides to amend its Rules of Procedure as follows:
3.1 replace Rule 6.2.
b with the following text:
“Each national delegation shall
include at least 40% men and 40% women in both its overall composition
and among the representatives, whilst striving for equal representation.
For the following delegations, specific provisions apply, as follows:
– delegations with 4 members (2 representatives and 2
substitutes) shall have a minimum of one woman and one man, including
at least one woman and one man as representatives;
– delegations with 6 members (3 representatives and 3
substitutes) shall have a minimum of 2 women and 2 men, including
at least one woman and one man as representatives;
– delegations with 8 members (4 representatives and 4
substitutes) shall have a minimum of 3 women and 3 men, including
at least one woman and one man as representatives.”;
3.2 at the end of Rule 44.2, insert the following text:
“For each seat, the national delegation
shall appoint a full member and an alternate.
Delegations shall strive for equal representation between
women and men, whilst ensuring a minimum representation of one third
of each sex in their appointments to each committee.”;
3.3 delete the second sentence of Rule 44.5;
3.4 replace Rules 44.3.
a and
b with the following text:
“44.3.a. For the Monitoring Committee,
the Committee on Rules, Ethics and Immunities and the Committee
on the Election of Judges to the European Court of Human Rights,
the Bureau shall appoint the members (and, in the case of the Committee
on the Election of Judges to the European Court of Human Rights,
also the alternates) on the basis of candidatures presented by the
political groups and taking into account gender balance and regional
balance, by applying the apportionment ratio based on the D’Hondt
method. Two additional appointments to the Committee on Rules, Ethics
and Immunities are allocated from among members of the Assembly who
do not belong to any political group.
44.3.b. At the beginning of each ordinary session, each
political group shall present candidatures to each of these committees,
while striving for equal representation between women and men, ensuring
that their nominations to each committee include at least one third
of candidates of each sex. The political groups shall nominate the
members with a view to ensuring a fair representation of national
delegations, where applicable. The Bureau shall appoint members,
while striving for equal representation between women and men, ensuring
that each committee includes at least one third of members of each
sex.”;
3.5 at the end of Rule 44.4.
a,
insert the following text:
“An
ad hoc committee should include at least 40% of each sex, whilst
striving for equal representation between women and men.”;
3.6 renumber Rule 44.4.
c as
Rule 44.5 and replace its second sentence with the following text:
“An ad hoc committee should include
at least 40% of each sex, whilst striving for equal representation
between women and men.”;
3.7 delete the footnote to Rule 44.4.c;
3.8 at the end of Rule 44.4.
c, insert
the following text:
“However,
reports on the observation of elections may be presented to the
Assembly or the Standing Committee.”;
3.9 in Rule 46.1, replace the words “while taking into account
the principle of gender equality” with the following words:
“whilst striving for equal representation
between women and men.”;
3.10 in Rule 50.1, replace the fourth sentence with the following:
“A committee shall include at least
one third of each sex among its rapporteurs, while striving for equal
representation between women and men.”;
3.11 at the end of Rule 62.5, insert the following text:
“The delegation shall include both
women and men among its representatives and strive to ensure equal
representation between women and men, while ensuring a minimum of
40% of each sex in its composition.”;
3.12 in Rule 63.2, replace the final sentence with the following
text:
“The delegation shall be
composed so as to ensure a fair representation of the political
parties or groups within the parliament. The delegation shall include
both women and men among its representatives and shall strive to
ensure equal representation between women and men.”;
3.13 in Rule 64.4, replace the final sentence with the following
text:
“The delegation shall be
composed so as to ensure a fair representation of the political
parties or groups within the parliament. The delegation shall include
both women and men among its representatives and shall strive to
ensure equal representation between women and men.”.
4. The Assembly also agreed to a number of minor modifications
to the Rules of Procedure as follows:
4.1 in Rule 14.3, first sentence, and in Rule 16.1, replace
the word “twenty” with the word “nineteen”;
4.2 in the complementary text “Election of Assembly Vice-Presidents”
(Appendix IX to the Rules of Procedure), under paragraph 1, group
I, replace the word “six” with the word “five”;
4.3 in Rule 19.6, replace the first sentence with the following
sentence:
“Chairpersons of political
groups are ex officio members of the general committees, except
the Committee on the Election of Judges to the European Court of
Human Rights.”;
4.4 in Rule 48.4, replace the first sentence with the following
sentence:
“Members of the Assembly
may attend meetings of committees of which they are not members without
the right to vote. They can speak if called by the chairperson of
the committee.”;
4.5 In Rule 48.5, replace the words “appointed to a committee
may participate in its meetings” with the following words:
“may participate in the meetings
of one of the first six committees listed in Rule 44.1”.
5. In order to rebalance the workload and mandates of committees,
the Assembly amends the “Terms of reference of Assembly committees”
(Appendix VII to the Rules of Procedure), part B, “Specific terms
of reference of Assembly committees” as follows:
5.1 in “I. Committee on Political
Affairs and Democracy (AS/Pol)”:
5.1.1 delete paragraph
3;
5.1.2 in paragraph 6, delete “and in the European Centre for
Global Interdependence and Solidarity (North-South Centre)”;
5.2 in “III. Committee on Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable
Development (AS/Soc)”:
5.2.1 in paragraph 1, delete the
words “economic co-operation and development”;
5.2.2 delete paragraph 4;
5.3 replace the entry for “IV. Committee on Migration, Refugees
and Displaced Persons (AS/Mig)” with the following text:
“IV. Committee on Migration, International
Protection and Economic Co-operation (AS/Mig)
Number of seats: 81
Terms of reference:
1. The committee shall consider all relevant matters relating
to (i) migration, international protection and displacement, and
(ii) economic co-operation and development. It shall work and propose
legal and political solutions and actions for closer European co-operation
in these fields, as well as, when relevant, with non-European countries,
in keeping with the human rights and humanitarian values of the
Council of Europe.
2. The committee shall in particular:
i. consider questions relating to migration, including
the rights of migrants during the migration process, and co-operation
between countries of origin, transit and destination;
ii. consider issues linked to international protection,
in particular the asylum process in Europe and the rights of asylum
seekers and refugees;
iii. consider the situation of internally displaced persons
in Europe, their rights and humanitarian needs;
iv. consider community relations in multicultural societies,
including the situation and integration of migrants and their social,
economic, civil and political rights;
v. consider humanitarian law and humanitarian issues;
vi. consider questions relating to population, demography,
nationality and stateless persons;
vii. consider questions relating to economic co-operation
and development;
viii. prepare reports on the activities of the Organisation
for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). For the preparation
of the reports and debates in the Assembly, the committee maintains
relations with the OECD and with parliaments of non-member states
for the purpose of their participation in those debates;
ix. prepare reports on the activities of the European
Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). For the preparation
of the reports and debates in the Assembly, the committee maintains relations
with the EBRD and with parliaments of non-member states to facilitate
their participation in those debates;
x. report regularly on the activities of the Council of
Europe Development Bank.
3. The committee shall represent the Assembly in, and
follow the work of, the relevant expert committees of the Council
of Europe.
4. The committee shall share the Assembly representation
in the European Centre for Global Interdependence and Solidarity
(North-South Centre).”;
5.4 in “V. Committee on Culture, Science, Education and Media
(AS/Cult)”, paragraph 4, delete “and the European Centre for Global
Interdependence and Solidarity (North-South Centre)”.
6. The Assembly decides that the amendments to the Rules of Procedure
contained in paragraph 3.1 of this Resolution shall enter into force
at the opening of the January 2027 part-session. All other amendments
to the Rules of Procedure set out in this Resolution shall enter
into force at the opening of the January 2026 part-session.
