STANDING ORDERS OF THE IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT
Section 1 - The Speaker of Parliament
1) The Speaker of the Imperial Parliament shall be the Presiding Officer of the Imperial Parliament.
2) At the beginning of each session, the outgoing Speaker shall conduct the vote for the new Speaker, either from among the Members of Parliament who are not members of the Executive Government or from among persons who are not Members of Parliament; provided that a person shall not be elected as Speaker if, under any of the provisions of the Constitution, he is not qualified for election.
3) If the outgoing Speaker is not present, the Clerk of Parliament shall take to the Chair to conduct the vote.
4) The Speaker shall not be prohibited from fulfilling all other duties and privileges of a Member of Parliament.
5) Nominations for the Speakership may be closed by a unanimous consent order.
Section 2 - The Clerk of the Imperial Parliament
1) The Clerk shall be appointed by the Speaker and confirmed by a majority vote of the Imperial Parliament, either from among the Members of the Imperial Parliament who are not members of the Executive Government or from among persons who are not Members of the Imperial Parliament; provided that a person who is not a Member of the Imperial Parliament shall not be elected as Clerk if, under any of the provisions of the Constitution, he is not qualified for election as a Member of the Imperial Parliament.
2) The Clerk of The Imperial Parliament shall be required to:
a. Keep records of the current membership of the Imperial Parliament;
b. Keep records of all votes conducted and all introduced bills and resolutions;
c. Conduct the Speaker vote, if the outgoing Speaker is not present; and
d. Make all records viewable by the public.
Section 3 - Floor Leaders
1) Each political party or coalition represented in the Imperial Parliament shall have the right to appoint a Floor Leader, and notify the Speaker of said appointment.
2) The Floor Leaders shall act as the leader of the floor activities of their respective party or coalition.
Section 4 - Introduction of Motions
1) Any Member may introduce or propose any motion for debate in, or may present any petition to, the Imperial Parliament, and the same shall be debated and disposed of according to the Standing Orders.
2) To introduce or propose any motion for consideration by the Imperial Parliament, the Member shall post the text of said motion to the Imperial Parliament forum with the suitable prefixes in the title as stipulated below:
a) [Bill] if motion is made to table legislation;
B) [Resolution] if motion is made to table a resolution; or
c) [Motion] if motion is made to table another matter that doesn't fit into the descriptions in Section 4, Subsections 2 (a) and (B)
3) Each motion shall have a minimum of one week for general debate and amendments; where
a) The Speaker of the Imperial Parliament upon recommendation by the Members of the Imperial Parliament shall extend, delay or end debate when the Speakers feels it is necessary.
4) During the debate, any Member may introduce amendments to the motion in consideration. This shall be conducted in the same manner as any motion.
5) After the debate period, the Speaker shall conduct the vote on any amendments that may have come up. After the vote has ceased, the motion shall be voted upon; provided that
a) The ballot choices shall be the following:
I) Oui, Si (Yea), which shall be a vote to pass the motion;
ii) Non, No (Nay), which shall be a vote to defeat the motion;
iii) Abstain, which shall be a vote to not make a decision on the motion; or
IV) Defer, which shall be a vote to extend the debate period for one week.
B) All votes shall be conducted via a write in ballot to be posted on the Imperial Parliament forum; and
c) All voting shall be conducted over a minimum four day period, where
6) The Speaker of the Imperial Parliament upon recommendation by the Members of the Imperial Parliament shall extend, delay or end voting when the Speakers feels it is necessary.
7) At the conclusion of voting procedures, according to the votes cast the Speaker of the Imperial Parliament will announce the passing or rejection of legislation.
8) If a piece of legislation passes, the Speaker of the Imperial Parliament will present it to His Imperial Majesty the Emperor for Imperial Assent if the legislation requires the approval of the Crown.
Section 5 - Rules of Decorum
1) Members shall refrain from ad hominem attacks against fellow Members on the Imperial Parliament forum.
a) If a Member violates this rule, another Member may ask that the words of the Member in Question be retracted; provided that
I) Any member asking that the words of another member be retracted must specifically what words violated this rule.
ii) If the Speaker orders that the words of a Member be retracted, then the Member shall be barred from speaking on the Imperial Parliament forum for two days.
iii) A Member may appeal a ruling of the Speaker, retracting his words within twenty-four hours of the ruling of the Speaker.
iv) While the matter is under appeal, the Member in question shall not be barred from speaking on the Imperial Parliament forum.
v) If a majority of the Imperial Parliament votes to overrule the Speaker, then the Member in question's words shall not be retracted.
vi) If a majority does not vote to overrule the Speaker, the Member in question's words shall be retracted, and he shall be disciplined in accordance with this rule.
B) A Member's words may not be retracted if the statement is an attack on the Member in question's position on an issue as long as the language used in the attack is not obscene or uncivil; and
c) A Member's words may not be retracted if his statements were made in a debate over disciplining a member of the Imperial Parliament.
2) A Member may be disciplined by the Imperial Parliament for statements made outside the Imperial Parliament about colleagues in the Imperial Parliament only if such statements are defamatory, obscene, or bring gross indignity upon the Imperial Parliament.
Section 6 - Rules of Discipline
1) The Imperial Parliament may discipline its Members for unethical conduct, or conduct which brings disrepute upon the Imperial Parliament.
2) The Imperial Parliament may reprimand one of its members by a Majority vote; provided that
a) A Resolution reprimanding a Member may only be amended with a substitute Resolution for the censuring or expelling of the Member;
B) A Resolution reprimanding a Member must be voted upon within two weeks of its introduction; and
c) If a Resolution reprimanding a Member is passed by a Majority of the Imperial Parliament then the Resolution shall be published on all public forums of the Empire.
3) The Imperial Parliament may censure one of its members by a Majority vote; provided that
a) A Resolution censuring a Member may only be amended with a substitute Resolution for the reprimanding or expelling of the Member;
B) A Resolution censuring a Member must be voted upon within two weeks of its introduction;
c) If a Resolution censuring a Member is passed by a Majority of the Imperial Parliament then the Resolution shall be published on all public forums of the Empire. In addition to this, the Member shall be removed from all committees of the Imperial Parliament on which they sit, be forbidden from speaking on the Imperial Parliament forum, and be disallowed from sponsoring any legislation or amendments on the Imperial Parliament for the rest of the session; and
d) If the Speaker is censured, he shall be removed as Speaker.
4) The Imperial Parliament may expel one of its members by a Two Thirds Majority vote; provided that
a) A Resolution expelling a Member may only be amended with a substitute Resolution for the reprimanding or censuring of the Member;
B) A Resolution expelling a Member must be voted upon within two weeks of its introduction; and
c) If a Resolution expelling a Member is passed by two thirds of the Imperial Parliament, the Resolution of expulsion shall be published on all public forums of the Empire, and forwarded to His Imperial Majesty for approval; provided that
I) If His Imperial Majesty approves of the expulsion; the Member shall be removed from serving in the Imperial Parliament, and forbidden from serving in the Imperial Parliament for the next two terms consecutively; and
ii) If His Imperial Majesty does not approve of the expulsion, the Member shall receive the punishment of censure instead.
5) The Imperial Parliament may, on passage of a resolution calling for investigation by a majority of the Imperial Parliament, begin a Commission of Enquiry to enquire into the conduct of one of their own Members, provided that
a) A Resolution to begin an enquiry into the conduct of a Member must list what specific acts shall be investigated;
B) If a Resolution to begin an enquiry is passed, The Speaker shall appoint members of the Commission of Enquiry unless the Speaker's conduct is to be investigated, and then the Imperial Chancellor shall appoint the members of the Commission of Enquiry;
c) The Commission of Enquiry shall have the power to issue subpoenas and subpoenas duces tecum for witnesses and evidence; provided that
I) The Commission of Enquiry shall limit its investigation to the conduct that is listed in the Enquiry Resolution; and
ii) If during the course of their investigation, members of the Commission of Enquiry uncover evidence of other conduct they believe merits investigation, they may investigate it, if a majority of the members of the Imperial Parliament concur.
d) Upon completion of their investigation, the Commission of Enquiry by a majority vote shall report back to the Imperial Parliament one or the following:
I) That the Member being investigated has done nothing worthy of the discipline of the Imperial Parliament and that the Imperial Parliament should take no action against him;
ii) That a Letter of Rebuke was sent to the Member and no further action by the Imperial Parliament is necessary;
iii) That the Member's conduct warrants a reprimand;
iv) That the Member's conduct warrants a censure; or
v) That the Members conduct warrants expulsion from the Imperial Parliament; provided that if the Commission of Enquiry reports that the member under investigation warrants a reprimand, a censure, or expulsion, it shall report out a resolution of reprimand, censure, or expulsion, depending on which course is recommended that shall be treated in the same manner as other Resolutions of Reprimand, Censure, and Expulsion.
6) A Member may only be disciplined if one or more of the following is true:
a) His actions brought disgrace and dishonor upon the Imperial Parliament:
I) He has allowed himself to corrupted (i.e. through bribery or extortion);
ii) He has violated a trust given him by the Imperial Parliament;
iii) He has abused the power of his office;
iv) He has been convicted of a crime;
v) He has behaved in a disrespectful manner towards the Imperial Parliament;
vi) He has been incompetent in the performance of a duty given him by the Imperial Parliament and that incompetence has brought shame upon the Imperial Parliament; or
vii) He has lost capacity to serve in the Imperial Parliament.
B) A Member may not be disciplined by the Imperial Parliament for any of the following reasons:
I) His political party, ideology or beliefs;
ii) His vote on any motion to the Imperial Parliament; or
iii) His religious beliefs or lack thereof.
c) To vote for the disciplining of another Member, a Member must be convinced by clear and convincing evidence that the Member has committed an offense that is covered by Section 6, Subsection 6 (a) and that the punishment he votes for is the correct and proportional response to the ethical misconduct of the Member warranting discipline.
Section 7 - Amendments to the Standing Order
1) The Standing Orders may be amended by the Speaker of the Imperial Parliament upon recommendation by the Members of the Imperial Parliament.
2) If a motion to amend the Standing Orders is approved by two-thirds of the Imperial Parliament, the Speaker shall amend the standing orders.
Section 8 - Suspension of the Standing Orders
1) The Speaker of the Imperial Parliament shall reserve the power of suspending and reinstating the standing order of the Imperial Parliament.
2) If a motion to suspend the Standing Orders is approved by two-thirds of the Imperial Parliament, the Speaker shall suspend the standing orders.
3) If a motion to reinstate the Standing Orders is approved by two-thirds of the Imperial Parliament, the Speaker shall reinstate the standing orders
4) Amendments to the Constitution may not be introduced under suspension of the Standing Orders.
Section 9 - General Consent
1) Any member of the Imperial Parliament may call for general consent.
2) Under General Consent, any piece of legislation must receive the mandatory 3 votes (out of 5) in favor or against in order for voting to be concluded.
3) The Speaker of the Imperial Parliament has the authority to revoke or evoke General Consent if he feels it is necessary.
Section 10 - Fast Track
1) Any member of the Imperial Parliament may call for "fast track" in regards to any piece of legislation. This must be seconded by another member.
2) Under Fast Track procedures, voting procedures are immediately initiated once such a motion is seconded.
3) The Speaker of the Imperial Parliament has the authority to revoke or evoke Fast Track procedures if he feels it is necessary.
Section 11 Amendments
1) There shall be two types of amendments - friendly and unfriendly.
2) A friendly amendment shall be any amendment to a piece of legislation where the writer of legislation agrees with the amendment. An unfriendly amendment shall be any amendment to a piece of legislation where the writer of legislation does not agree with the amendment.
3) Friendly amendments can be added to legislation without a vote however it must be announced to the chamber and recognized by the Speaker.
4) Unfriendly amendments need to be voted on before being added to legislation
Section 12 Unanimous Consent
1) Any member may call for Unanimous Consent where is bill is automatically passed unless an objection is made within the allotted voting period.
Section 13 Roberts Rules of Order
1) For any area not explicitly covered in these Standing Orders, Roberts Rule of Order shall be used and referenced.
Section 14 - Committee
1) Any voting delegate may motion to form a Committee on a particular subject area for the purposes of legislative discussion and possible formation of a working paper.
2) Such Committee session within the Imperial Parliament shall be labeled "[Committee]" followed by the topic of the session
3) The Speaker of the Imperial Parliament must consent to the formation of the Committee and shall serve as its Chair. The Speaker shall also be the person responsible for adjourning such a committee session.
Section 15 - Definitions
1) All references to the male gender shall mean both the male and female gender.
2) For the purposes of the business of the Imperial Parliament, the following definitions shall apply:
a) Bill, which shall be a draft of a proposed law, statute, decree, enactment, or amendment, presented for approval to the Imperial Parliament;
B) Act, which shall be a product, such as a law, statute, decree, enactment, or amendment, resulting from a decision by the Imperial Parliament;
c) Resolution, which shall be a formal statement of a decision or expression of opinion put before or adopted by the Imperial Parliament;
d) Motion, which shall be an act of tabling either a Bill, Resolution or any other action that requires the Imperial Parliament to act upon.
What the hell is all this? Although this may be comprehensive it is not conducive to a good, simple working environment. I also feel that a lot of this would be more use as a constitutional ammendment as opposed to a whopping great act of parliament.
In all honesty Minister, these orders were suggested to me by somebody else. I saw no problem with them and was proud to present them to Parliament. But you are right, constitutional amendment would be the best route. I think we are already seeing flaws in the constitution. Things have been left out.
Its not a case that the constitution is flawed its a case that its our job to improve as the times dictate. The constitution is a freat document.
Mr Speaker,
I withdraw this Bill.