The status of the chairpersons of political groups in committees (Rule 18.5 of the Rules of Procedure of the Assembly)

Resolution 1911 (2012)

Author(s):

Parliamentary Assembly

Origin

Text adopted by the Standing Committee, acting on behalf of the Assembly, on 30 November 2012 (see Doc. 13058, report of the Committee on Rules of Procedure, Immunities and Institutional Affairs, rapporteur: Mr Díaz Tejera).

Thesaurus

1. The chairpersons of political groups in the Parliamentary Assembly have the right to sit as ex officio members on the Committee on Rules of Procedure, Immunities and Institutional Affairs and on the Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy. However, there is no harmonisation of the relevant rules regarding the associated participation rights.

2. The Parliamentary Assembly resolves to grant the chairpersons of political groups, with effect from the entry into force of this resolution, the status of ex officio members of the Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy and the Committee on the Honouring of Obligations and Commitments by Member States of the Council of Europe (Monitoring Committee) and to harmonise the relevant rules so that they have the same rights as the other members of these committees, a status which they already hold on the Committee on Rules of Procedure, Immunities and Institutional Affairs.

3. The Assembly therefore resolves to amend its Rules of Procedure as follows:

3.1 Rule 18.5 of the Rules of Procedure is replaced by the following: “Chairpersons of political groups are ex officio members of the Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy, the Committee on the Honouring of Obligations and Commitments by Member States of the Council of Europe (Monitoring Committee) and the Committee on Rules of Procedure, Immunities and Institutional Affairs. Rule 43.6 shall not apply to them.”;

3.2 Rule 43.1 is amended as follows: “Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy (89 seats)”, “Committee on the Honouring of Obligations and Commitments by Member States of the Council of Europe (Monitoring Committee) (89 seats)”;

3.3 in Rule 43.3, replace the words “the 84 members of the Monitoring Committee” with the words “84 of the 89 members of the Monitoring Committee” and delete the words “Chairpersons of political groups shall be ex officio members of the committee”;

3.4 in Rule 48.3, replace the words “A committee of 84 seats” with “A committee of 84 or 89 seats”.

4. The Assembly resolves that the amendments to the Rules of Procedure set out in this resolution shall enter into force at the opening of the 2013 ordinary session (21 January 2013).