Belgian Senate
Encyclopedia
The Belgian Senate is one of the two chambers of the bicameral
Federal Parliament
of Belgium
, the other being the Chamber of Representatives. It is considered to be the "upper house
" of the Federal Parliament.
, the National Congress
decided about the Belgian Constitution and the state structure. A bicameral Parliament was chosen over a unicameral one, due to fears of more democratic and progressive decisions in the Chamber of Representatives, as was seen in France. Thus the Senate served as a more conservative and elite body. To be eligible, one had to pay 1000 florins, which meant that at that time, only about 4000 persons could be elected.
In the past, French was the sole language of government in Belgium. In 1913, the liberal Emmanuel De Cloedt spoke for the first time in history Dutch in the Senate, which the French-speaking pro-catholic newspaper La Libre Belgique
described as séparatisme parlementaire ("parliamentary separatism").
The Flemish nationalist party New Flemish Alliance (N-VA) (which became the largest party in 2010), among other Flemish parties, said in 2010 that they want to abolish the Senate. The French-speaking parties, however, want to keep the Senate. During the 2010–2011 Belgian government formation, it has been decided that the Senate would no longer be directly elected and instead become a meeting place for members of the various regional parliaments.
of May 21, 1995, there were 184 elected senators. The fourth State Reform, which took place in 1993, revised the Belgian Constitution
and replaced the provincial senators, who were appointed by the Provincial Councils, with Community senators. The change took effect following the May 21, 1995 federal election.
and a French
electoral college. Unlike for European Parliament elections
there is no German-speaking electoral college, instead the members of the German-speaking Community
are a part of the French electoral college. Even though there are two electoral colleges, there are three constituencies for Senate elections: a Flemish
constituency, a Wallonian constituency and the constituency of Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde
, which comprises the Brussels-Capital Region and the surrounding part of the Flemish Region
.
The voters in the Flemish constituency belong to the Dutch electoral college and the voters in the Walloon constituency (which also includes the people living in the German-speaking Community) belong to the French electoral college, whereas the voters in Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde can choose for which electoral college they want to vote: they have the lists of both electoral colleges on one ballot. In each electoral college, the seats are divided by proportional representation, using the D'Hondt method
.
Of the total of 40 directly elected Senators, 25 are elected by the Dutch electoral college and 15 by the French electoral college. These numbers are fixed by Article 67 of the Belgian Constitution
and roughly reflect the ratio of Dutch-speakers to French-speakers by population. The directly elected Senators are always elected on the same day as the members of the Chamber of Representatives, for a term of 4 years, except if the Chambers are dissolved earlier. The last federal election
took place on Sunday June 13, 2010.
In addition to the Senators directly elected in the federal elections, each political party
or electoral list that participates in the direct election also has a number of so-called supplementary members or substitutes . Supplementary members are not actual members of the Senate and they do not take the oath of office, however, in the event that a Senator decides not to take up their mandate or resigns from office, or is appointed to government, the first supplementary member from the same electoral list becomes a Senator upon taking the oath of office in order to replace that Senator. In case the first supplementary member decides not to take up their mandate or already replaces another Senator, the second supplementary member on the same list becomes a Senator, etc. The order of the supplementary members is determined by the votes each supplementary member received in the election. If a supplementary member was also an effective candidate but wasn't elected, the votes they received as an effective candidate are not taken into account to determine their place in the order of the supplementary members.
These replacements can be permanent, for instance when a Senator resigns, but they can also be temporary, in case a Senator is appointed to government the supplementary member replaces that Senator only for the duration of their ministerial mandate, and that Senator can take up their mandate as a Senator again after they cease to be a minister. Electoral lists of the Dutch
electoral college have 14 supplementary members, whereas electoral lists of the French
electoral college have 9 supplementary members.
, 10 by the Parliament of the French Community
and one by the Parliament of the German-speaking Community
. The German-speaking senator is chosen by plurality; the other Senate seats are distributed using the results of the direct election between the parties that have at least one directly elected senator, insofar as they have enough seats in, respectively, the Flemish Parliament
or the Parliament of the French Community
.
These Community senators hold a double mandate. They are appointed to the Senate for a term of 4 years, but as the Community parliaments are renewed every 5 years, it is possible that regional elections take place during these 4 years. In this event, the Community senators who are not re-elected to their Community parliament are replaced by a member belonging to the same fraction
, insofar as that fraction has enough seats left in the Flemish Parliament
or the Parliament of the French Community
, as the case may be, following the regional elections to replace those Community senators.
In order to ensure that the Senate can continue to exercise its functions when the Community parliaments are dissolved, the Community Senators remain in office until the parliament of their Community either confirms their mandate or appoints new Community senators.
as a new category of Senators. It was intended to allow the Senators to elect a number of experts or members of representative organisations to join them to enhance the quality of debate and legislation; however, political parties soon started using it as a means of rewarding loyal members that weren't elected.
, therefore, to pass a valid vote, 36 of the 71 senators have to be present.
There are currently three Senators by Right: Prince Philippe, Princess Astrid
and Prince Laurent.
sets forth four qualifications for senators: each senator must be at least 21 years old, must possess the Belgian nationality, must have the full enjoyment of civil and political rights, and must be resident in Belgium
. A senator can only enter into office after having taken the constitutional oath of office, in either of the three official languages in Belgium: Dutch
, French
or German
. They may also choose to take the oath in more than one language. The oath of office is as follows: "I swear to observe the Constitution".
Certain offices are incompatible with the office of senator. Members of a regional or community parliament who take the oath of office as a Senator, with the exception of Community Senators, automatically cease to sit in the regional or community parliament, in accordance with the Belgian Electoral Code. The same applies the other way around as well, a senator who takes the oath of office in a regional or community parliament automatically ceases to be a senator. A member of the Senate may not also be a member of the Chamber of Representatives at the same time and Representatives must give up their seats in the Chamber of Representatives in order to join the Senate.
Another important incompatibility is based on the separation of powers
. A senator who is appointed as a minister ceases to sit in the Senate and is replaced for as long as they are a minister, but if that individual resigns as a minister, they may return to the Senate, in accordance with Article 50 of the Belgian Constitution
. A senator cannot also be a civil servant or a member of the judiciary at the same time, however, a civil servant who is elected to the Senate is entitled to political leave and doesn't have to resign as a civil servant. It is also not possible to be a member of the Federal Parliament
and a Member of the European Parliament
at the same time.
The Senate does not systematically check whether any of these (or other) incompatibilities apply to its members, however, newly elected senators are informed of the most important incompatibilities at the start of their mandate and it is up to them to verify whether they are in compliance with the regulations regarding incompatibilities and, if not, to determine which office they will abandon.
, all Senators are divided into two language groups: a Dutch language
group and a French language
group; the former consists of the directly elected members for the Dutch electoral college, the members appointed by the Flemish Parliament
and the members co-opted by the two aforementioned groups; the latter consists of the directly elected members for the French electoral college, the members appointed by the Parliament of the French Community
and the members co-opted by the two aforementioned groups. There are 41 Senators in the Dutch language group and 29 in the French language group. Just like the German-speaking Community Senator, the Senators by Right are not part of either language group either.
Article 67 of the Belgian Constitution
also determines that at least one of the senators in the Dutch language group must be resident in the Brussels-Capital Region on the date of their election, as well as six of the senators in the French language group.
, is elected by the Senate at the beginning of each parliamentary term. The President of the Senate is assisted by three Vice-Presidents, who are also elected at the beginning of each parliamentary term. The President of the Senate is customarily a member of a majority party with a great deal of political experience, while the First Vice-President is a member of the other language group.
The current President of the Belgian Senate is Sabine de Bethune
of the Christian Democratic and Flemish party (CD&V).
The President of the Senate presides over the plenary assembly of the Senate, guides and controls debates in the assembly, and is responsible for ensuring the democratic functioning of the Senate, for the maintenance of order and security in the assembly and for enforcing the Rules of the Senate. To this end, they have extensive powers. They also represent the Senate at both the national (to the other institutions) and the international level. Additionally, they chair the Bureau, which determines the order of business, supervises the administrative services of the Senate, and leads the Senate's activities.
The President of the Senate, together with the President of the Chamber of Representatives, ranks immediately behind the King in the order of precedence
. The elder of the two takes the second place in the order of precedence. The Presidents of the Senate and the Chamber rank above the Prime Minister.
The Bureau of the Senate is composed of the President, the three Vice-Presidents, the floor leaders of the fractions
that are represented in the standing committees
and the Quaestors. Currently, the only fraction whose floor leader is not a member of the Bureau is the Ecolo
Fraction, which has only two members. The Bureau leads the day-to-day activities of the Senate and convenes at least once a week in order to manage the work of the Senate. The Bureau determines the legislative agenda and the order of business in the plenary assembly and the committees, decides upon the lists of speakers, and manages the internal affairs of the Senate. A member of the Federal Government is usually invited to attend the discussions about the legislative agenda. The Bureau also assists the President in the conduct of parliamentary business. In addition, the Bureau also appoints and dismisses the staff of the Senate on the advice of the College of Quaestors.
The Senate has a College of Quaestors, which consists of three Senators who are in charge of Senate housekeeping. These Senators, who are known as Quaestors, are responsible for the financial management of the Senate, they have to make sure that the necessary equipment and facilities are available and they advise the Bureau on matters relating to the administration of the services of the Senate, such as human resources and logistics. The Quaestors are also members of the Bureau. The Colleges of Quaestors of the Senate and the Chamber of Representatives meet regularly to settle common problems concerning the library, buildings, security, catering, etc.
The Senate is also served by a number of civil servants. The Senate's chief administrative officer is the Clerk (or Secretary-General) of the Senate, who is appointed by the assembly and heads the Senate's legislative and administrative services.
, which resulted in the Senate having fewer competences than the Chamber of Representatives. Prior to that, the Chamber of Representatives and the Senate did the same parliamentary work on an equal footing.
In certain matters both the Chamber and the Senate still have equal power, which means that both Chambers must pass exactly the same version of the bill. These include constitutional revisions, laws requiring a qualified majority (the so-called "community laws"), laws on the basic structure of the Belgian State, laws approving agreements of cooperation between the Federal State
, the Communities and the Regions, laws on the approval of international treaties, and laws on the organisation of the judiciary, the Council of State
, and the Constitutional Court of Belgium. Additionally, all bills concerning international treaties are introduced in the Senate first before moving on to the Chamber.
For all other legislation, the Chamber of Representatives takes precedence over the Senate. However, the Senate may still intervene as a chamber of consideration and reflection as it has the opportunity to, within specific time limits, examine the texts adopted by the Chamber and, if there is a reason to do so, make amendments. The Chamber may subsequently adopt or reject the amendments proposed by the Senate or make new proposals. Whatever the case, the Chamber has the final word on all "ordinary legislation". The Senate may also submit a bill it has adopted to the Chamber which can approve, reject or amend it, in this case the Chamber also has the final word.
In accordance with Article 143 of the Belgian Constitution
, the Federal State, the Communities and the Regions have to observe federal loyalty. However, that does not prevent conflicts of interest. By virtue of its composition, the Senate is the assembly within which the conflicts of interest between the Federal State, the Communities and the Regions may be resolved. The Senate may decide on such conflicts by giving reasoned advice, but such decisions are not binding. In addition, the Senate has also been entrusted with the responsibility for examining how the division of competences between the various components of the federal level can be made more homogeneous.
). The meetings of the committees are generally open to the public.
The Federal Parliament also includes joint committee
s, which include members of both the Senate and the Chamber of Representatives, such as the Parliamentary Consultation Committee
, which is tasked with resolving certain problems relating to legislative procedures. One of the main problems in this respect concerns the determination of the legislative procedure to be followed. Other issues concern the time limits to "evoke" and review certain bills. There are others joint committees, such as the Federal Advisory Committee on European Affairs
. In the latter, there are not only Senators and Representatives, but also Belgian Members of the European Parliament.
The Senate, just like the Chamber of Representatives, has the right to conduct parliamentary inquiries pursuant to article 56 of the Belgian Constitution
, which provides that "Each Chamber has the right of inquiry". Committees of inquiry were rarely set up until 20 years ago, and have been used increasingly in the recent past. In practice, the Senate uses the right of inquiry by creating a parliamentary committee of inquiry composed of a number of Senators. This committee can summon and hear witnesses. A parliamentary committee of inquiry can also conduct searches and seize documents. Committee meetings at which witnesses or experts are heard are public unless the committee decides otherwise. Normally, the committee is obliged to report in a given time to the plenary assembly. It can for instance suggest amending existing legislation. The plenary assembly votes on motions submitted in the committee's report.
Bicameralism
In the government, bicameralism is the practice of having two legislative or parliamentary chambers. Thus, a bicameral parliament or bicameral legislature is a legislature which consists of two chambers or houses....
Federal Parliament
Belgian Federal Parliament
The Belgian Federal Parliament is a bicameral parliament. It consists of the Chamber of Representatives and the Senate . It sits in the Palace of the Nation .- Chamber of Representatives :...
of Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
, the other being the Chamber of Representatives. It is considered to be the "upper house
Upper house
An upper house, often called a senate, is one of two chambers of a bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the lower house; a legislature composed of only one house is described as unicameral.- Possible specific characteristics :...
" of the Federal Parliament.
History and future
After the Belgian RevolutionBelgian Revolution
The Belgian Revolution was the conflict which led to the secession of the Southern provinces from the United Kingdom of the Netherlands and established an independent Kingdom of Belgium....
, the National Congress
National Congress of Belgium
The Belgian National Congress was a temporary legislative assembly in 1830, established shortly after the Provisional Government of Belgium had proclaimed Belgian independence on October 4 of that year...
decided about the Belgian Constitution and the state structure. A bicameral Parliament was chosen over a unicameral one, due to fears of more democratic and progressive decisions in the Chamber of Representatives, as was seen in France. Thus the Senate served as a more conservative and elite body. To be eligible, one had to pay 1000 florins, which meant that at that time, only about 4000 persons could be elected.
In the past, French was the sole language of government in Belgium. In 1913, the liberal Emmanuel De Cloedt spoke for the first time in history Dutch in the Senate, which the French-speaking pro-catholic newspaper La Libre Belgique
La Libre Belgique
La Libre Belgique is a Belgian newspaper in French. In Belgium, it can be roughly seen as an equivalent of Flemish De Standaard. The paper is widely perceived as pro-catholic...
described as séparatisme parlementaire ("parliamentary separatism").
The Flemish nationalist party New Flemish Alliance (N-VA) (which became the largest party in 2010), among other Flemish parties, said in 2010 that they want to abolish the Senate. The French-speaking parties, however, want to keep the Senate. During the 2010–2011 Belgian government formation, it has been decided that the Senate would no longer be directly elected and instead become a meeting place for members of the various regional parliaments.
Composition
Of the total of 71 elected senators, 40 are elected directly, 21 appointed by the Community parliaments and 10 senators are co-opted. The overall distribution of seats between parties is however determined by the results of the direct election. Prior to the Belgian federal electionBelgian general election, 1995
The 21 May 1995 Belgian general elections was a Belgian election for the Belgian Chamber of Representatives and Belgian Senate. The Christian People's Party won the elections, and Jean-Luc Dehaene continued as Prime Minister.-Senate:...
of May 21, 1995, there were 184 elected senators. The fourth State Reform, which took place in 1993, revised the Belgian Constitution
Constitution of Belgium
The Constitution of Belgium dates back to 1831. Since then Belgium has been a parliamentary monarchy that applies the principles of ministerial responsibility for the government policy and the Trias Politica. The Constitution established Belgium as a centralised unitary state...
and replaced the provincial senators, who were appointed by the Provincial Councils, with Community senators. The change took effect following the May 21, 1995 federal election.
Directly elected Senators
For the election of the 40 directly elected members, the electorate is divided into two electoral colleges: a DutchDutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
and a French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
electoral college. Unlike for European Parliament elections
Elections in the European Union
Elections to the Parliament of the European Union take place every five years by universal adult suffrage. 736 MEPs are elected to the European Parliament which has been directly elected since 1979. No other body is directly elected although the Council of the European Union and European Council is...
there is no German-speaking electoral college, instead the members of the German-speaking Community
German-speaking Community of Belgium
The German-speaking Community of Belgium is one of the three federal communities of Belgium. Covering an area of 854 km² within the province of Liège in Wallonia, it includes nine of the eleven municipalities of the so-called East Cantons...
are a part of the French electoral college. Even though there are two electoral colleges, there are three constituencies for Senate elections: a Flemish
Flanders
Flanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...
constituency, a Wallonian constituency and the constituency of Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde
Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde
Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde is a Belgian electoral and judicial arrondissement in the center of the country, encompassing:* the officially bilingual Brussels-Capital Region, which coincides...
, which comprises the Brussels-Capital Region and the surrounding part of the Flemish Region
Flemish Region
The Flemish Region is one of the three official regions of the Kingdom of Belgium—alongside the Walloon Region and the Brussels-Capital Region. Colloquially, it is usually simply referred to as Flanders, of which it is the institutional iteration within the context of the Belgian political system...
.
The voters in the Flemish constituency belong to the Dutch electoral college and the voters in the Walloon constituency (which also includes the people living in the German-speaking Community) belong to the French electoral college, whereas the voters in Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde can choose for which electoral college they want to vote: they have the lists of both electoral colleges on one ballot. In each electoral college, the seats are divided by proportional representation, using the D'Hondt method
D'Hondt method
The d'Hondt method is a highest averages method for allocating seats in party-list proportional representation. The method described is named after Belgian mathematician Victor D'Hondt who described it in 1878...
.
Of the total of 40 directly elected Senators, 25 are elected by the Dutch electoral college and 15 by the French electoral college. These numbers are fixed by Article 67 of the Belgian Constitution
Constitution of Belgium
The Constitution of Belgium dates back to 1831. Since then Belgium has been a parliamentary monarchy that applies the principles of ministerial responsibility for the government policy and the Trias Politica. The Constitution established Belgium as a centralised unitary state...
and roughly reflect the ratio of Dutch-speakers to French-speakers by population. The directly elected Senators are always elected on the same day as the members of the Chamber of Representatives, for a term of 4 years, except if the Chambers are dissolved earlier. The last federal election
Belgian general election, 2007
The 2007 Belgian general election took place on Sunday 10 June 2007. Voters went to the polls in order to elect new members for the Chamber of Representatives and Senate.Eligible voters were Belgian citizens 18 years and older...
took place on Sunday June 13, 2010.
In addition to the Senators directly elected in the federal elections, each political party
Political party
A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...
or electoral list that participates in the direct election also has a number of so-called supplementary members or substitutes . Supplementary members are not actual members of the Senate and they do not take the oath of office, however, in the event that a Senator decides not to take up their mandate or resigns from office, or is appointed to government, the first supplementary member from the same electoral list becomes a Senator upon taking the oath of office in order to replace that Senator. In case the first supplementary member decides not to take up their mandate or already replaces another Senator, the second supplementary member on the same list becomes a Senator, etc. The order of the supplementary members is determined by the votes each supplementary member received in the election. If a supplementary member was also an effective candidate but wasn't elected, the votes they received as an effective candidate are not taken into account to determine their place in the order of the supplementary members.
These replacements can be permanent, for instance when a Senator resigns, but they can also be temporary, in case a Senator is appointed to government the supplementary member replaces that Senator only for the duration of their ministerial mandate, and that Senator can take up their mandate as a Senator again after they cease to be a minister. Electoral lists of the Dutch
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
electoral college have 14 supplementary members, whereas electoral lists of the French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
electoral college have 9 supplementary members.
Community Senators
A total of 21 are appointed by and from the Community parliaments: 10 by the Flemish ParliamentFlemish Parliament
The Flemish Parliament constitutes the legislative power in Flanders, for matters which fall within the competence of Flanders, both as a geographic region and a cultural community of Belgium The Flemish Parliament (Dutch: , and formerly called Flemish Council or Vlaamse Raad) constitutes the...
, 10 by the Parliament of the French Community
Parliament of the French Community
The Parliament of the French Community is the legislative assembly of the French Community of Belgium based in the Quartier Royal....
and one by the Parliament of the German-speaking Community
Parliament of the German-speaking Community
The Parliament of the German-speaking Community is the legislative assembly of the German-speaking Community of Belgium based in Eupen.The most important tasks of the Parliament of the German-speaking Community include the election and the supervision of the Government of the German-speaking...
. The German-speaking senator is chosen by plurality; the other Senate seats are distributed using the results of the direct election between the parties that have at least one directly elected senator, insofar as they have enough seats in, respectively, the Flemish Parliament
Flemish Parliament
The Flemish Parliament constitutes the legislative power in Flanders, for matters which fall within the competence of Flanders, both as a geographic region and a cultural community of Belgium The Flemish Parliament (Dutch: , and formerly called Flemish Council or Vlaamse Raad) constitutes the...
or the Parliament of the French Community
Parliament of the French Community
The Parliament of the French Community is the legislative assembly of the French Community of Belgium based in the Quartier Royal....
.
These Community senators hold a double mandate. They are appointed to the Senate for a term of 4 years, but as the Community parliaments are renewed every 5 years, it is possible that regional elections take place during these 4 years. In this event, the Community senators who are not re-elected to their Community parliament are replaced by a member belonging to the same fraction
Fraction (politics)
A parliamentary group, parliamentary party, or parliamentary caucus is a group consisting of members of the same political party or electoral fusion of parties in a legislative assembly such as a parliament or a city council. Parliamentary groups correspond to party caucuses and conferences in the...
, insofar as that fraction has enough seats left in the Flemish Parliament
Flemish Parliament
The Flemish Parliament constitutes the legislative power in Flanders, for matters which fall within the competence of Flanders, both as a geographic region and a cultural community of Belgium The Flemish Parliament (Dutch: , and formerly called Flemish Council or Vlaamse Raad) constitutes the...
or the Parliament of the French Community
Parliament of the French Community
The Parliament of the French Community is the legislative assembly of the French Community of Belgium based in the Quartier Royal....
, as the case may be, following the regional elections to replace those Community senators.
In order to ensure that the Senate can continue to exercise its functions when the Community parliaments are dissolved, the Community Senators remain in office until the parliament of their Community either confirms their mandate or appoints new Community senators.
Co-opted Senators
Ten Senators are co-opted, meaning they are elected by their peers: six by the Dutch-language group and four by the French-language group. These seats are distributed between parties using the direct election results. In 1893, the co-opted members were included in the ConstitutionConstitution of Belgium
The Constitution of Belgium dates back to 1831. Since then Belgium has been a parliamentary monarchy that applies the principles of ministerial responsibility for the government policy and the Trias Politica. The Constitution established Belgium as a centralised unitary state...
as a new category of Senators. It was intended to allow the Senators to elect a number of experts or members of representative organisations to join them to enhance the quality of debate and legislation; however, political parties soon started using it as a means of rewarding loyal members that weren't elected.
Senators by Right
These are the children of the King, older than 18, or if there are none, the Belgian descendants of the main branch of the Royal house, who have taken the oath of office. Having reached the age of 21, the Senators by Right are in theory entitled to vote, but in practice they do not cast their vote. They are not counted towards the required quorumQuorum
A quorum is the minimum number of members of a deliberative assembly necessary to conduct the business of that group...
, therefore, to pass a valid vote, 36 of the 71 senators have to be present.
There are currently three Senators by Right: Prince Philippe, Princess Astrid
Princess Astrid, Archduchess of Austria-Este
Princess Astrid of Belgium, Archduchess of Austria-Este is the daughter and second child of King Albert II of the Belgians and his wife Queen Paola...
and Prince Laurent.
Qualifications
Article 69 of the Belgian ConstitutionConstitution of Belgium
The Constitution of Belgium dates back to 1831. Since then Belgium has been a parliamentary monarchy that applies the principles of ministerial responsibility for the government policy and the Trias Politica. The Constitution established Belgium as a centralised unitary state...
sets forth four qualifications for senators: each senator must be at least 21 years old, must possess the Belgian nationality, must have the full enjoyment of civil and political rights, and must be resident in Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
. A senator can only enter into office after having taken the constitutional oath of office, in either of the three official languages in Belgium: Dutch
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
, French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
or German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
. They may also choose to take the oath in more than one language. The oath of office is as follows: "I swear to observe the Constitution".
Certain offices are incompatible with the office of senator. Members of a regional or community parliament who take the oath of office as a Senator, with the exception of Community Senators, automatically cease to sit in the regional or community parliament, in accordance with the Belgian Electoral Code. The same applies the other way around as well, a senator who takes the oath of office in a regional or community parliament automatically ceases to be a senator. A member of the Senate may not also be a member of the Chamber of Representatives at the same time and Representatives must give up their seats in the Chamber of Representatives in order to join the Senate.
Another important incompatibility is based on the separation of powers
Separation of powers
The separation of powers, often imprecisely used interchangeably with the trias politica principle, is a model for the governance of a state. The model was first developed in ancient Greece and came into widespread use by the Roman Republic as part of the unmodified Constitution of the Roman Republic...
. A senator who is appointed as a minister ceases to sit in the Senate and is replaced for as long as they are a minister, but if that individual resigns as a minister, they may return to the Senate, in accordance with Article 50 of the Belgian Constitution
Constitution of Belgium
The Constitution of Belgium dates back to 1831. Since then Belgium has been a parliamentary monarchy that applies the principles of ministerial responsibility for the government policy and the Trias Politica. The Constitution established Belgium as a centralised unitary state...
. A senator cannot also be a civil servant or a member of the judiciary at the same time, however, a civil servant who is elected to the Senate is entitled to political leave and doesn't have to resign as a civil servant. It is also not possible to be a member of the Federal Parliament
Belgian Federal Parliament
The Belgian Federal Parliament is a bicameral parliament. It consists of the Chamber of Representatives and the Senate . It sits in the Palace of the Nation .- Chamber of Representatives :...
and a Member of the European Parliament
Member of the European Parliament
A Member of the European Parliament is a person who has been elected to the European Parliament. The name of MEPs differ in different languages, with terms such as europarliamentarian or eurodeputy being common in Romance language-speaking areas.When the European Parliament was first established,...
at the same time.
The Senate does not systematically check whether any of these (or other) incompatibilities apply to its members, however, newly elected senators are informed of the most important incompatibilities at the start of their mandate and it is up to them to verify whether they are in compliance with the regulations regarding incompatibilities and, if not, to determine which office they will abandon.
Language groups
With the exception of the Senator appointed by the Parliament of the German-speaking CommunityParliament of the German-speaking Community
The Parliament of the German-speaking Community is the legislative assembly of the German-speaking Community of Belgium based in Eupen.The most important tasks of the Parliament of the German-speaking Community include the election and the supervision of the Government of the German-speaking...
, all Senators are divided into two language groups: a Dutch language
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
group and a French language
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
group; the former consists of the directly elected members for the Dutch electoral college, the members appointed by the Flemish Parliament
Flemish Parliament
The Flemish Parliament constitutes the legislative power in Flanders, for matters which fall within the competence of Flanders, both as a geographic region and a cultural community of Belgium The Flemish Parliament (Dutch: , and formerly called Flemish Council or Vlaamse Raad) constitutes the...
and the members co-opted by the two aforementioned groups; the latter consists of the directly elected members for the French electoral college, the members appointed by the Parliament of the French Community
Parliament of the French Community
The Parliament of the French Community is the legislative assembly of the French Community of Belgium based in the Quartier Royal....
and the members co-opted by the two aforementioned groups. There are 41 Senators in the Dutch language group and 29 in the French language group. Just like the German-speaking Community Senator, the Senators by Right are not part of either language group either.
Article 67 of the Belgian Constitution
Constitution of Belgium
The Constitution of Belgium dates back to 1831. Since then Belgium has been a parliamentary monarchy that applies the principles of ministerial responsibility for the government policy and the Trias Politica. The Constitution established Belgium as a centralised unitary state...
also determines that at least one of the senators in the Dutch language group must be resident in the Brussels-Capital Region on the date of their election, as well as six of the senators in the French language group.
Officers
The presiding officer of the Senate, known as the President of the SenatePresident of the Senate
The President of the Senate is a title often given to the presiding officer of a senate, and is the speaker of other assemblies.The senate president often ranks high in a jurisdiction's succession for its top executive office: for example, the President of the Senate of Nigeria is second in line...
, is elected by the Senate at the beginning of each parliamentary term. The President of the Senate is assisted by three Vice-Presidents, who are also elected at the beginning of each parliamentary term. The President of the Senate is customarily a member of a majority party with a great deal of political experience, while the First Vice-President is a member of the other language group.
The current President of the Belgian Senate is Sabine de Bethune
Sabine de Bethune
Sabine de Bethune is a Belgian politician and a member of the Christian Democratic and Flemish.The daughter of former Kortrijk mayor, Emmanuel de Bethune, Bethune holds a Master of Laws from the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven. She was elected as a member of the Belgian Senate in 1995. Sabine is...
of the Christian Democratic and Flemish party (CD&V).
The President of the Senate presides over the plenary assembly of the Senate, guides and controls debates in the assembly, and is responsible for ensuring the democratic functioning of the Senate, for the maintenance of order and security in the assembly and for enforcing the Rules of the Senate. To this end, they have extensive powers. They also represent the Senate at both the national (to the other institutions) and the international level. Additionally, they chair the Bureau, which determines the order of business, supervises the administrative services of the Senate, and leads the Senate's activities.
The President of the Senate, together with the President of the Chamber of Representatives, ranks immediately behind the King in the order of precedence
Order of precedence
An order of precedence is a sequential hierarchy of nominal importance of items. Most often it is used in the context of people by many organizations and governments...
. The elder of the two takes the second place in the order of precedence. The Presidents of the Senate and the Chamber rank above the Prime Minister.
The Bureau of the Senate is composed of the President, the three Vice-Presidents, the floor leaders of the fractions
Fraction (politics)
A parliamentary group, parliamentary party, or parliamentary caucus is a group consisting of members of the same political party or electoral fusion of parties in a legislative assembly such as a parliament or a city council. Parliamentary groups correspond to party caucuses and conferences in the...
that are represented in the standing committees
Standing Committee
In the United States Congress, standing committees are permanent legislative panels established by the United States House of Representatives and United States Senate rules. . Because they have legislative jurisdiction, standing committees consider bills and issues and recommend measures for...
and the Quaestors. Currently, the only fraction whose floor leader is not a member of the Bureau is the Ecolo
Ecolo
Ecolo is a French-speaking Belgian green political party in Wallonia, Brussels and the German-speaking Community of Belgium...
Fraction, which has only two members. The Bureau leads the day-to-day activities of the Senate and convenes at least once a week in order to manage the work of the Senate. The Bureau determines the legislative agenda and the order of business in the plenary assembly and the committees, decides upon the lists of speakers, and manages the internal affairs of the Senate. A member of the Federal Government is usually invited to attend the discussions about the legislative agenda. The Bureau also assists the President in the conduct of parliamentary business. In addition, the Bureau also appoints and dismisses the staff of the Senate on the advice of the College of Quaestors.
The Senate has a College of Quaestors, which consists of three Senators who are in charge of Senate housekeeping. These Senators, who are known as Quaestors, are responsible for the financial management of the Senate, they have to make sure that the necessary equipment and facilities are available and they advise the Bureau on matters relating to the administration of the services of the Senate, such as human resources and logistics. The Quaestors are also members of the Bureau. The Colleges of Quaestors of the Senate and the Chamber of Representatives meet regularly to settle common problems concerning the library, buildings, security, catering, etc.
The Senate is also served by a number of civil servants. The Senate's chief administrative officer is the Clerk (or Secretary-General) of the Senate, who is appointed by the assembly and heads the Senate's legislative and administrative services.
Tasks
Since the elections of 21 May 1995, there has been a breakdown of powers between the Senate and the Chamber of RepresentativesBelgian Chamber of People's Representatives
The Belgian Chamber of Representatives is one of the two chambers in the bicameral Federal Parliament of Belgium, the other being the Senate...
, which resulted in the Senate having fewer competences than the Chamber of Representatives. Prior to that, the Chamber of Representatives and the Senate did the same parliamentary work on an equal footing.
In certain matters both the Chamber and the Senate still have equal power, which means that both Chambers must pass exactly the same version of the bill. These include constitutional revisions, laws requiring a qualified majority (the so-called "community laws"), laws on the basic structure of the Belgian State, laws approving agreements of cooperation between the Federal State
Politics of Belgium
Politics of Belgium takes place in a framework of a federal, parliamentary, representative democratic, constitutional monarchy, whereby the King of the Belgians is the Head of State and the Prime Minister of Belgium is the head of government in a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by...
, the Communities and the Regions, laws on the approval of international treaties, and laws on the organisation of the judiciary, the Council of State
Council of State (Belgium)
Council of State , in Belgium, is an organ of the Belgian government: it is the Supreme Administrative Court of Belgium. Its functions include assisting the executive with legal advice and being the supreme court for administrative justice...
, and the Constitutional Court of Belgium. Additionally, all bills concerning international treaties are introduced in the Senate first before moving on to the Chamber.
For all other legislation, the Chamber of Representatives takes precedence over the Senate. However, the Senate may still intervene as a chamber of consideration and reflection as it has the opportunity to, within specific time limits, examine the texts adopted by the Chamber and, if there is a reason to do so, make amendments. The Chamber may subsequently adopt or reject the amendments proposed by the Senate or make new proposals. Whatever the case, the Chamber has the final word on all "ordinary legislation". The Senate may also submit a bill it has adopted to the Chamber which can approve, reject or amend it, in this case the Chamber also has the final word.
In accordance with Article 143 of the Belgian Constitution
Constitution of Belgium
The Constitution of Belgium dates back to 1831. Since then Belgium has been a parliamentary monarchy that applies the principles of ministerial responsibility for the government policy and the Trias Politica. The Constitution established Belgium as a centralised unitary state...
, the Federal State, the Communities and the Regions have to observe federal loyalty. However, that does not prevent conflicts of interest. By virtue of its composition, the Senate is the assembly within which the conflicts of interest between the Federal State, the Communities and the Regions may be resolved. The Senate may decide on such conflicts by giving reasoned advice, but such decisions are not binding. In addition, the Senate has also been entrusted with the responsibility for examining how the division of competences between the various components of the federal level can be made more homogeneous.
Committees
The Senate uses committees for a variety of purposes. The Senate has several standing committees, each of which has responsibility for a particular area of government (for example justice or social affairs). These standing committees examine and consider bills and legislative proposals, and may for this purpose hold hearings. A standing committee comprises 17 Senators, members are appointed using proportional representation. The chairpersons of the standing committees are also divided among the parties in accordance with the same principle of proportional representation. As a result, some standing committees are chaired by members of the opposition. There are currently seven standing committees within the Senate, one of which is charged with monitoring the Permanent Oversight Committee on the Intelligence Services. The Senate can also set up special committees, advisory committees or workgroups to examine a particular bill or a specific issue (such as the workgroup on bioethicsBioethics
Bioethics is the study of controversial ethics brought about by advances in biology and medicine. Bioethicists are concerned with the ethical questions that arise in the relationships among life sciences, biotechnology, medicine, politics, law, and philosophy....
). The meetings of the committees are generally open to the public.
The Federal Parliament also includes joint committee
Joint committee
A Joint Committee is a term in politics that is used to refer to a committee made up of members of both chambers of a bicameral legislature. In other contexts, it refers to a committee with members from more than one organization.-Republic of Ireland:...
s, which include members of both the Senate and the Chamber of Representatives, such as the Parliamentary Consultation Committee
Parliamentary Consultation Committee
The Parliamentary Consultation Committee is a joint committee of the Federal Parliament of Belgium. It is established by Article 82 of the Belgian Constitution and its main task is to resolve certain disputes with regard to legislative procedure and the time limits within which the Senate can evoke...
, which is tasked with resolving certain problems relating to legislative procedures. One of the main problems in this respect concerns the determination of the legislative procedure to be followed. Other issues concern the time limits to "evoke" and review certain bills. There are others joint committees, such as the Federal Advisory Committee on European Affairs
Federal Advisory Committee on European Affairs
The Federal Advisory Committee on European Affairs is a joint committee of the Federal Parliament of Belgium. It consists of the members of the Advisory Committee on European Affairs of the Chamber of Representatives, which is composed of 10 Representatives and 10 Belgian Members of the European...
. In the latter, there are not only Senators and Representatives, but also Belgian Members of the European Parliament.
The Senate, just like the Chamber of Representatives, has the right to conduct parliamentary inquiries pursuant to article 56 of the Belgian Constitution
Constitution of Belgium
The Constitution of Belgium dates back to 1831. Since then Belgium has been a parliamentary monarchy that applies the principles of ministerial responsibility for the government policy and the Trias Politica. The Constitution established Belgium as a centralised unitary state...
, which provides that "Each Chamber has the right of inquiry". Committees of inquiry were rarely set up until 20 years ago, and have been used increasingly in the recent past. In practice, the Senate uses the right of inquiry by creating a parliamentary committee of inquiry composed of a number of Senators. This committee can summon and hear witnesses. A parliamentary committee of inquiry can also conduct searches and seize documents. Committee meetings at which witnesses or experts are heard are public unless the committee decides otherwise. Normally, the committee is obliged to report in a given time to the plenary assembly. It can for instance suggest amending existing legislation. The plenary assembly votes on motions submitted in the committee's report.
List of standing committees
- Justice
- Foreign Relations and Defence
- Institutional Affairs
- Finances and Economic Affairs
- Interior and Administrative Affairs
- Social Affairs
Latest election
See also
- Belgian Chamber of Representatives
- Belgian Federal ParliamentBelgian Federal ParliamentThe Belgian Federal Parliament is a bicameral parliament. It consists of the Chamber of Representatives and the Senate . It sits in the Palace of the Nation .- Chamber of Representatives :...
- List of Presidents of the Belgian Senate
- Politics of BelgiumPolitics of BelgiumPolitics of Belgium takes place in a framework of a federal, parliamentary, representative democratic, constitutional monarchy, whereby the King of the Belgians is the Head of State and the Prime Minister of Belgium is the head of government in a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by...