MECKLENBURG-VORPOMMERN LANDTAG (STATE PARLIAMENT) GENERAL DATA General data of the region Country: Germany (357,123.5 sq km; 81.8 million inhabitants) Region: Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (23,180.14 sq. km; 1.636 million inhabitants) Regional government: Mecklenburg-Vorpommern is governed by a coalition of the SPD and the CDU, formed as a result of the State Parliament election on 4 September 2011. The Minister-President of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern is Erwin Sellering. He is supported by the State Chancellery. In addition to the State Chancellery, there are eight ministries. The SPD leads five of these and the CDU three. Competences of the region: * Federal law takes precedence over Land law: The Federal Republic of Germany is made up of 16 constituent states (Länder). Accordingly, federal laws apply for the whole territory of the Federation, and Land laws only have validity in the Land in question. Land laws may not conflict with federal laws. The legislative competencies of the Federation and the Länder are regulated in detail by the Basic Law. Articles 71 to 75 list the legislative powers of the Federation. In all other cases, the Länder are responsible. * Exclusive legislation: The Federation holds exclusive legislative competence in the following fields: all foreign policy issues, defence, including the protection of the civil population, citizenship, currency and money, the unity of the customs and trading area and cooperation between the Federation and the Länder concerning criminal police work. 1 * Concurrent legislation: In fields subject to concurrent legislation, the Länder have the right to adopt legislation provided and in so far as the Federation makes no use of its legislative powers in these fields. Civil law, criminal law, the prison system, road traffic, the law of association and assembly, the law relating to the residence and establishment of foreign nationals, business law, consumer protection and the benefits granted to members of the public service are all among the fields subject to concurrent legislation. General data of the Parliament Headquarters: Schwerin castle Language: German Date of foundation: 14 October 1990 Web site: www.landtag-mv.de Logo Coat of Arms 2 FUNCTIONS OF THE PARLIAMENT The Landtag elects the Minister-President of the Land It is the legislative body, i.e. it decides on the laws of the Land, including the budget It controls the State Government and the Land’s administration COMPOSITION Total composition: 71 members Gender distribution and average age: 20 women and 51 men; average age: 49.1 years (Sept. 2011) Electoral system The electoral law of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern provides a so-called personalised proportional representation. Each voter has two votes. With the Erststimme (first vote) the candidate of the electoral district who receives the highest number of votes is elected (relative majority). As there are 36 electoral districts, 36 members of parliament are elected by first vote. The remaining 35 seats are assigned via the Land list of the parties (Zweitstimme – second vote). It is the Zweitstimme which determines the distribution of seats in the Landtag. It decides on the strength of a parliamentary group and thus on the possibilities of forming majorities and coalitions. In addition, there is a five per cent threshold in order to keep the parliament operational and prevent a fragmentation of the political landscape. Term of office 5 years 3 Voting conditions (active suffrage) Any citizen is entitled to vote who is German national according to Article 116 (1) of the Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany; who has reached the age of 18; who is not excluded from the right to vote; who has been permanent resident in the electoral territory for at least 37 days; who has been added to the electoral roll or who has received a ballot. Conditions for eligibility (passive suffrage) Any citizen is entitled to stand for election who is German according to Article 116 (1) of the Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany; who is entitled to hold public office; who has reached the age of 18; who has been permanent resident in the Land Mecklenburg- Vorpommern for at least three months. Composition of the Parliament as a result of the last parliamentary elections Political parties and number of seats (elections of September 4/18, 2011) SPD: 27 members CDU: 18 members DIE LINKE: 14 members Bündnis 90/Die Grünen: 7 members NPD: 5 members 4 Parliamentary political groups Requirements to form a parliamentary political group An association of at least four members of the Landtag constitutes a parliamentary group (Article 25 of the constitution of the Land Mecklenburg- Vorpommern). Parliamentary groups are independent branches of the Landtag. They contribute to the development of parliamentary opinion in the exercise of their own rights and duties. The relative strengths of the parliamentary groups determine the composition of the expert committees. Political group SPD Name : Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands - Social Democratic Party Chairman: Dr. Norbert Nieszery Number of members: 27 Contact details: [email protected] Phone: +49-385-525-2355 Political group CDU Name: Christlich Demokratische Union - Christian Democratic Union Chairman: Vincent Kokert Number of members: 18 Contact details: [email protected] Phone: +49-385-525-2205 5 Political group DIE LINKE Name: DIE LINKE – THE LEFT Chairman: Helmut Holter Number of members: 14 Contact details: [email protected] Phone: +49-385-525-2500 Political group Bündnis 90/Die Grünen Name: Bündnis 90/Die Grünen - Alliance 90/ The Greens Chairman: Jürgen Suhr Number of members: 7 Contact details: [email protected] Phone: +49-385-525-2451 Political group NPD Name: Nationaldemokratische Partei Deutschlands – National Democratic Party Chairman: Udo Pastörs Number of members: 5 Contact details: [email protected] Phone: +49-385-525-1311 6 THE GOVERNING BODIES OF THE PARLIAMENT The President Method of election, term of office and functions In the constituent session of the Landtag Mecklenburg-Vorpommern on 4 October 2011, Sylvia Bretschneider was elected in secret ballot for President. She has chaired the Landtag since 2002. Details of current President Sylvia Bretschneider (SPD) Vice-Presidents First: Beate Schlupp (CDU) Second: Regine Lück (DIE LINKE) Third: Silke Gajek (BÜNDNIS 90/DIE GRÜNEN) Contact details [email protected] Phone: +49-385-525-2100 The President and Vice-Presidents of the Land Parliament. From left to right: Silke Gajek, Sylvia Bretschneider, Beate Schlupp, Regine Lück 7 PARLIAMENTARY OPERATING ORGANS Plenary session Composition According to Article 20 (2) of the Constitution, the Land Parliament shall consist of at least 71 members. Functions The Land Parliament is the elected representative of the people. It is the arena in which the political will is formed. It elects the Minister-President, exercises legislative power, and controls the activity of the Land government and administration. It deals with public issues. The Plenary Assembly during a vote - Photo: Balewski 8 Committees Presently there are 10 committees and one study commission. Composition According to Article 33 (1) of the Constitution, the composition of the committees shall correspond to the relative strength of the parliamentary groups, and shall take account of the rights of non-attached members. Committee on Petitions Functions The Committee on Petitions deals with suggestions, requests and complaints of citizens, provided that the matter falls within the competence of the authorities of the Land, and that there is no interference with a pending court procedure or the review of a court decision is demanded. Committee on Internal Affairs Functions As a corresponding expert committee the Committee on Internal Affairs monitors, accompanies and supports the governmental activity of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Sports. It essentially deals with: municipal affairs, police, fire brigades, sports, and the protection of the constitution. Committee on European and Legal Affairs Functions The Committee on European and Legal Affairs is competent for European and Federal matters, the judicial system of the Land, the constitution, the Rules of Procedure of the Landtag, the scrutiny of elections, matters relating to immunity and ecclesiastical affairs. As an expert committee it monitors the governmental activity of the State Chancellery regarding the Land’s European policy. Furthermore it monitors the governmental activity of the Ministry of Justice regarding the judicial system, including legal education, social services, the pardon system, the constitution and law. The members of the committee are also members of the special committee responsible for the preparation of the elections of the members of the Land Constitutional Court. 9 The members of the Committee on European and Legal Affairs Financial Committee Functions The main tasks of the Financial Committee are the monitoring of fiscal policy and the deliberations on the Land’s budget. The Land’s budget, in turn, constitutes the basis for the government activity during the respective financial year, which the Financial Committee accompanies in the framework of the parliamentary budget control by means of conditional acceptances and rights of information. The Financial Committee’s focus concerns the budget and budget control, budget law and budget systems, taxes and duties, national property and national debt, and staff expenditures