The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), meeting in plenary session in Strasbourg, has decided to amend its Rules of Procedure and to institute a procedure to bring into play the institutional accountability of holders of elective offices within the Assembly and “to dismiss them during their term of office”.
The resolution adopted today on the basis of a report by Liliane Maury Pasquier (Switzerland, SOC), stresses that this procedure is in no regard a criminal measure and applies solely to high elective offices, namely the President and Vice-Presidents of the Parliamentary Assembly, and the chairpersons and vice-chairpersons of the committees.
The Assembly may henceforth terminate their functions, on the ground that “they no longer enjoy the confidence of the Assembly”, be it that they no longer fulfil the conditions required for the exercise of that office or are guilty of serious misconduct by seriously or repeatedly violating the provisions of the Code of Conduct for members of the Parliamentary Assembly.
The resolution took effect upon its adoption today.