Special law
Encyclopedia
A special law or qualified majority law is a type of legislation
in Belgium
which requires a qualified majority in both chambers of the bicameral Belgian Federal Parliament
to be adopted, amended or repealed. The Belgian Constitution
determines which laws require a qualified or special majority
. Special laws are primarily used in institutional matters and in matters concerning the competences of the communities and regions of Belgium. One of the best known examples is the Special Law of 8 August 1980 on the Reform of the Institutions.
A special law must be adopted by both the Chamber of Representatives and the Senate
in accordance with Article 4, last paragraph, of the Belgian Constitution
, which provides that a special law requires a majority
of votes cast in both the Dutch
-speaking and the French
-speaking language group, on the condition that an absolute majority of the members of each language group is present, and the total number of votes in favour in both language groups must constitute a supermajority
of two-thirds of the total number of votes cast.
Legislation
Legislation is law which has been promulgated by a legislature or other governing body, or the process of making it...
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...
which requires a qualified majority in both chambers of the bicameral Belgian 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 :...
to be adopted, amended or repealed. 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...
determines which laws require a qualified or special majority
Majority
A majority is a subset of a group consisting of more than half of its members. This can be compared to a plurality, which is a subset larger than any other subset; i.e. a plurality is not necessarily a majority as the largest subset may consist of less than half the group's population...
. Special laws are primarily used in institutional matters and in matters concerning the competences of the communities and regions of Belgium. One of the best known examples is the Special Law of 8 August 1980 on the Reform of the Institutions.
A special law must be adopted by both the Chamber of Representatives and the Senate
Belgian Senate
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.-History and future:...
in accordance with Article 4, last paragraph, 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 a special law requires a majority
Majority
A majority is a subset of a group consisting of more than half of its members. This can be compared to a plurality, which is a subset larger than any other subset; i.e. a plurality is not necessarily a majority as the largest subset may consist of less than half the group's population...
of votes cast in both 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...
-speaking and 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...
-speaking language group, on the condition that an absolute majority of the members of each language group is present, and the total number of votes in favour in both language groups must constitute a supermajority
Supermajority
A supermajority or a qualified majority is a requirement for a proposal to gain a specified level or type of support which exceeds a simple majority . In some jurisdictions, for example, parliamentary procedure requires that any action that may alter the rights of the minority has a supermajority...
of two-thirds of the total number of votes cast.