Chambre des Noblesse

The Chambre des Noblesse (also called the Noblesse) is the upper house of the legislature of the Kingdom of Belmont, and together with the Chambre des Communes comprises the Parliament of Belmont. Parliament comprises the Sovereign, the Chambre des Communes (which is the lower house of Parliament), and the Chambre des Noblesse. The composition and powers of the chamber are established in Article One of the Parliament Act 1164, and reaffirmed by the Parliament Act 1988.

The Noblesse has several exclusive powers not granted to the Communes, including, but not limited to, consenting to treaties as a precondition to their ratification and trial of national officials impeached by the Communes. The Noblesse is both a more deliberative and more prestigious body than the Communes, due to its aristocratic membership and longstanding tradition to deliberate in the interests of the country without partisan allegiances influencing them.

Membership in the chambre is divided into two categories; the Lords Aristocratique and the Lords Temporaire. The Lords Aristocratique are the representatives of the aristocratic families of the kingdom and the Lords Temporaire are "loyal subjects of the Crown" appointed by the Sovereign to the chambre, they usually bring some form of specialized knowledge into the chambre.

There is an impression in Belmont that since the Communes is an ever-changing body, the Noblesse is a constant body and thus serves to stabilize the country and has better oversight over the activities of the, comparatively volatile and severely partisan, Communes and Government.

The debating chamber of the Noblesse is located in the north wing of the Château de Royaume, in Paris, the royal capital. The Chambre des Communes convenes in the south wing of the château.

Relationship with Government
The Chambre des Noblesse does not directly control the term of the Premier or of the Government. Only the Lower House may force the Premier to resign or call elections by passing a motion of no-confidence. But the Noblesse has the power to approve or veto the motion of no confidence passed by the Lower House, and thus indirectly, has oversight of the Government. Thus governments tend to maintain a special relationship with the Noblesse, especially so if the government of time is a minority government.

Most Cabinet ministers are from the Chambre des Communes, rather than the Chambre des Noblesse. In particular, all Premiers since 1975 have been members of the Lower House. In recent history, it has been very rare for major cabinet positions (except Lord of the Chamber) to have been filled by nobles.

Legislative Functions
Legislation may be introduced in either chamber. However, the Parliament Act 1988 provides that "All bills for raising Revenue shall originate in the Chambre des Communes." As a result, the Noblesse does not have the power to initiate bills imposing taxes. Furthermore, the Chambre des Communes holds that the Chambre des Noblesse does not have the power to originate appropriation bills, or bills authorizing the expenditure of national funds. Historically, the Noblesse has disputed the interpretation advocated by the Communes. However, when the Noblesse originates an appropriations bill, the Communes simply refuses to consider it, thereby settling the dispute in practice. The Chambre des Noblesse debates legislation and has the power to amend or reject bills.

The approval of both chambers is required for any bill, including a revenue bill, to become law. Both chambers must pass the same version of the bill; if there are differences, they may be resolved by sending amendments back and forth or by a joint committee, which includes members of both chambers.

Checks and Balances
The various Parliament Acts passed through 1164 to 1988 provide several unique functions for the Noblesse that form its ability to "check and balance" the powers of other elements of the National Government, including the Crown. These include the requirement that the Noblesse may advise and must consent to some of the Sovereign's government appointments; also the Noblesse must ratify all treaties with foreign governments and it tries all impeachments.

The Sovereign can make certain appointments only with the advice and consent of the Noblesse. Officials whose appointments require the Noblesse's approval include members of the Constitutional Bench of the Privy Council, heads of the armed forces' branches and ambassadors. In addition, the Noblesse has the power to determine if candidates chosen by the Premier for other national agencies are of merit and the chambre may deliberate if the selections are of enough substance to be forwarded onto the Sovereign for the final decision of appointment.

The Noblesse also has a role in ratifying treaties. The Parliament Act 1988 provides that the Sovereign may only grant assent to a treaty if two-thirds of the Noblesse vote to grant advice and consent. However, not all international agreements are considered treaties under domestic law, even if they are considered treaties under international law.

Lords Aristocratique
Members of the Chambre des Noblesse who sit by virtue of their aristocratic lineage are known as Lords Aristocratique; they currently number 553 in the chambre, each representing one of the 553 noble families of the kingdom. The Parliament Act 1988 lists the method in which a Lords Aristocratique is chosen for the seat of the family.

At any time the seat of the family in the Noblesse is vacated, by death or resignation, the noble family must choose two members of the family which conform to the qualifications for membership to the Noblesse and submit their names to the Lord Chancellor, who in turn submits their names to the Sovereign, who approves or rejects the two candidates. After the family's two candidates have been given Royal Assent, the family must hold an internal ballot, in which all adult members (16 and above) of the family take part, except for the immediate family of the two candidates. Once a candidate has received a majority of the votes, he is proclaimed head of the family and charged to represent them in the Noblesse.

Lords Aristocratique are the most numerous of the two types of members of the chambre. The Lords Aristocratique, usually, have their own political groups. The Lords Aristocratique are mostly Monarchists, followed by Feudalists and then Nationalistes. The Lords Aristocratique are considered more powerful than the Lords Temporaire, simply because they can block any measure put forward by the Lords Temporaire and control the procedures of the chambre.

Lords Temporaire
Appointed by Sovereign, on the advice of the Premier, for their loyal service in the interests of the country, the Lords Temporaire are titled as Comte and are appointed for life. The Lords Temporaire almost always bring some form of specialized knowledge into the chambre and are held in great regard for that knowledge. Usually serving as Chairmen of the specialized committees formed by the Lord Chancellor to look into any particular matter of concern and/or interest.

The Lords Temporaire are usually aligned more with the mainstream political parties and a large number prefer to be Crossbenchers (ie, independent of the major political parties but not independent).

Qualifications
Several different qualifications apply for membership of the Chambre des Noblesse. No person may sit in the Chambre des Noblesse if under the age of 25. Furthermore, only subjects of the Kingdom of Belmont and its Realms may sit in the Chambre des Noblesse.

Additionally, if an individual sitting in the chambre is found guilty of one of the capital crimes, high treason, fraud and/or inciting revolt is immediately debarred from the chambre and any individual with found guilty of any of the above mentioned crimes is disqualified from service in the chambre. The individual may only continue to serve if he/she receives a full pardon from the Sovereign.

Officers
Traditionally the Chambre des Communes does not elect its own speaker, unlike the Chambre des Communes; rather, the ex officio presiding officer is the Lord Chancellor, who is the senior most member of the Privy Council and is appointed by the Sovereign from among the "esteemed gentry of all the realms". It is not necessary for the Lord Chancellor to be a member of the Noblesse but all Lord Chancellors from 1771 have been Peers.

Another officer of the body is the Lord of the Chamber, a peer selected by the Premier. The Lord of the Chamber is responsible for steering Government bills through the Chambre des Noblesse, and is a member of the Cabinet. The Lord of the Chamber also advises the Chambre on proper procedure when necessary, but such advice is merely informal, rather than official and binding. A Deputy is also appointed by the Premier, and takes the place of the Lord of the Chamber if he is not available.

Procedure
The Chambre des Noblesse and the Chambre des Communes assemble in the Château de Royaume. The Hall of Nobility, the debating chamber of the Noblesse, is lavishly decorated, in contrast with the more modestly furnished Communes' debating chamber, the Hall of the People. Like the Communes, its benches are colored red but the Chambre des Noblesse's heraldic color is green, since that is the color of the wax used by the Lord Chancellor when he puts his seal on bills passed by the Chambre.

The Hall of Nobility is the site of many formal ceremonies, the most famous of which is the State Opening of Parliament, held at the beginning of each new parliamentary session. During the State Opening, the Sovereign, seated on the Throne in the Hall of Nobility and in the presence of both Houses of Parliament, delivers a speech outlining the Government's agenda for the upcoming parliamentary session.

In the Chambre des Noblesse, members need not seek the recognition of the presiding officer before speaking, as is done in the Communes. If two or more Lords simultaneously rise to speak, the Chambre decides which one is to be heard by acclamation, or, if necessary, by voting on a motion. Often, however, the Lord of the Chamber will suggest an order, which is thereafter generally followed. Speeches in the Chambre des Noblesse are addressed to the Chambre as a whole ("My Lords") rather than to the presiding officer alone (as is the custom in the Lower House). Members may not refer to each other in the second person (as "you"), but rather use third person forms such as "the noble Duke", "the noble Earl", "the noble Lord", "my noble friend", etc.

Disciplinary powers
In an event where there is a misdemeanor from one of the members of the Noblesse, the Lord Chancellor and the Committee for Disciplinary Procedure is charged to reprimand the particular Peer. It is up to the Lord Chancellor and the committee to decide on the punishment and as to how severe it must be. There are no written rules as to the disciplinary procedure but it must be noted that there exist several codices which give an example as how to proceed in the situation a Peer is deemed to have misbehaved.

Leave of Absence
In 1926, to counter criticism that some peers only appeared at major decisions in the Chambre and thereby particular votes were swayed, the Standing Orders of the Chambre des Noblesse were enhanced. Peers who did not wish to attend meetings regularly or were prevented by ill health, age or further reasons, were now able to request Leave of Absence. During the granted time a peer is expected not to visit the Chambre's meetings until either its expiration or termination, announced at least a month prior to their return.

Committees
The Noblesse uses committees (and their subcommittees) for a variety of purposes, including the review of bills and the oversight of the Government. Formally, the whole Chambre appoints committee members. In practice, however, the choice of members is made by the political blocs. Generally, each bloc honors the preferences of individual Peers, giving priority based on seniority. Each bloc is allocated seats on committees in proportion to its overall strength.

Most committee work is performed by 16 standing committees, each of which has jurisdiction over a field such as finance or foreign relations. Each standing committee may consider, amend, and report bills that fall under its jurisdiction. Furthermore, each standing committee considers the Premier's nominations to offices related to its jurisdiction. (For instance, the Judiciary Committee considers candidates for judgeships, and the Foreign Relations Committee considers nominees for positions in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.) Committees may block nominees and impede bills from reaching the floor of the Noblesse.

Each Noblesse committee and subcommittee is led by a chair (usually a member of the majority bloc). Committee chairs are elected, but, in practice, seniority is rarely bypassed, but when it is, it is in cases where the senior most Peer is unable to perform. The chairs hold extensive powers: they control the committee's agenda, and so decide how much, if any, time to devote to the consideration of a bill; they act with the power of the committee in disapproving or delaying a bill or a nomination by the president; they manage on the floor of the full Chambre des Noblesse the consideration of those bills the committee reports.