Committee of reflection on the modernization and the rebalancing of the institutions

The Committee of reflection on the modernization and the rebalancing of the institutions is a think tank launched by the president of the French Republic Nicolas Sarkozy to reform the institutions of the Fifth Republic.

Composition

Chaired by the former Prime Minister Edouard Balladur, it includes/understands twelve other members:

Jack Lang and Pierre Mazeaud are named vice-presidents of the committee.

The committee must submit his in November 2007 report, for an application of a reform to be voted before March 2008. It met for the first time the July 18th 2007.

The possible participation of Jack Lang at this committee was very commented on in the press, because making following the participation of several other personalities close or members to the PS in the government. After the rule enacting that the people not designated by the PS accepting a mission of Nicolas Sarkozy should leave the leading authorities of the party fixed by the national office of the PS on July 9th, Jack Lang had announced her resignation of the national office and violently criticized the first secretary François Holland. Isolated in her position to reinforce the president, Jack Lang will not include the positions of the PS in the commission.

Speech of Épinal

The July 12th 2007, Nicolas Sarkozy makes with Épinal a speech, whose official title is Allocution in Épinal on the topic of the irreproachable democracy , more known like Discours of Epinal , in which it expresses his vision of the institutions. Sometimes one describes it like during Discours of Bayeux, in which the Général De Gaulle gave the June 16th 1946 its vision of the French institutions.

August 1st

Lines of thinking

Within the framework fixed by the president, who aims at consolidating the institutions within the framework of a mode to dominant presidential, several subjects were evoked:
  • the article 16 of the Constitution which gives to the president the full powerss in the event of crisis, which was not used that only once under Ve République could see its use less framed
  • Réflexion open on the article 49 of the Constitution on the political responsibility of the government in front of the Parlement.
  • Revaluation of the powers of the Parliament in terms of control of its day order and evaluation of the public policies.
  • Which place for the Prime Minister in an increasingly presidential mode? Jack Lang evoked even her possible suppression.
  • the relationship between the President and the Parliament: possibility for the president of expressing itself in front of the National Assembly
  • Re-eligibility of the President
  • possible Introduction of an amount of proportional for the election of the Parliament
  • Assiduity of the members of Parliament

Work of the commission

The commission worked for three months and carried out several hearings at 3 sessions of hearings, September 11th and 12th, September 18th and 19th and September 25th and 26th. Each hearing lasted between 1:00 and 1:30.

Were thus auditioned:

These hearings, except dissension of the speakers, were televised and diffused on the parliamentary chains Public Senate and LCP-AN.

Some other political parties or trade unions, like the CFDT, addressed requests or comments by mail.

Report/ratio of the committee

Edouard Balladur, in the presence of the other members of the committee, submitted officially on October 29th, 2007 the report of the committee to the president of the Republic.

The press was made the echo a few days before its official handing-over, of the principal proposals contained in this report/ratio. It comprises 77 proposals for revisions or articles new, of which 41 relates to the Constitution, bearing on more half of the articles of this one. These 77 proposals were adopted unanimously of the members of the committee.

The principal modifications suggested are:

  • Delimitation of attributions of the president of the Republic:

    • the articles 5 and 20 were specified. From now on the president defines the national policy and the government the led but it does not determine more.
    • Nominations with certain functions made by the president would be subjected to the opinion of a parliamentary commission.
    • Limitation of the Right of reprieve.
    • Suppression of the right to veto in fact as regards constitutional revision.
    • Control of the implementation of the full powerss (article 16) by the Constitutional council.
    • does not take any more the presidency of the superior council of the magistrature.
    • Possibility of coming to express itself before the Parliament, which could be followed by a debate but without vote.

  • Parliament:

    • Maîtrise of about a day of Parliament divided with the government (currently only this last in the control)
    • the discussions at the Parliament would relate on the texts of work of the commissions and either to that imposed by the government. The number of commissions would pass from 6 to 10.
    • Limitation of the use of the 49-3 by the government to the finance bills and from financing of the Social security
    • single Mandat for the members of Parliament. Those could not cumulate any more with another local or European mandate.
    • Introduction of a small amount of proportional for the election of the deputies (20 to 30 seats out of the 577 current seats) is approximately 5% of deputies elected according to this mode.
    • Better national representation with the Senate. Each local government agency whose currently all elected officials take part in the senator nomination, would see affected a given number of delegates being able to take part in this vote. This number of delegates would be proportional to the demographic weight of the community.

  • Candidature for the Presidency of the Republic:

    • Suppression of 500 sponsorships of elected officials to be able to be candidate. The selection of the candidates would be made by a college of approximately 100.000 elected officials made up of the members of Parliament, regional advisers and generals, mayors and delegates of the municipal councils. The latter would be selected with proportion of the population which they represent. The whole of the college would be subjected to an obligation of vote, with secret bulletin with the chief town of their department.

  • Civil right:

    • Institution of a popular referendum of initiative at the request of a fifth of the members of the Parliament and of a tenth of the voters. Currently, the president of the Republic has the monopoly of the initiative of a referendum.
    • Sasine of the Constitutional council by justiciable at the time of a lawsuit by way of exception for purposes to appreciate the conformity of a law to freedoms and basic rights recognized by the Constitution.

Comments and criticisms on the report/ratio

Comments of the committee

Edouard Balladur stated to wish that a bill taking as a starting point the proposals of the Committee which it chaired be examined in December and in January by the two rooms of the Parliament. But, conscious of the workload of the Parliament in the next months because of the European simplified Treaty, it does not wish that this revision not pass in front of the Congress (meeting of the 2 assemblies) before the municipal elections of March.

While speaking about work of the committee of reflection, it indicated that France had a Constitution " who will have one half-century, which functioned well, which ensured the effectiveness of the executive power, but times change and there is everywhere in the company a desire to take part, to contribute to the décisions".

The committee affirms in his report/ratio to propose the constitutional revision " more importante" company on our constitution since more than 40 years. The committee indicates that the Constitution was revised 22 times since 1958, including 15 since 1995 without were not set up of counterweight at the presidential capacity. estimate that the revision of the article 5 of the Constitution, trustful with the President of the Republic the care of " policy of Nation" , and withdrawing this capacity with the government correlatively, is likely to lead to an increasing presidentialisation of the mode, and to " to separate the capacity from the responsabilité". This proposal however is disputed by other authors, and in particular by Frederic Rolin which supports that on the contrary that this proposal does not carry any direct legal effect. The professor Pascal Jan considers as for him which “if the cohabitation occurred despite everything, the introduction of an amount of proportional to the legislative ballot which can thwart the electoral calculations most erudite, the Head of the State would not lay out of all the ways of any additional prerogative to be opposed to a hostile government. ”

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