Part III - Procedures of the Constitutional Convention

11 Procedural Senate

11 (1) The Constitutional Convention shall have a Procedural Senate for adjudicating on matters of procedure, and it shall have the following members:

(a) the Speaker of the House of Commons, who shall be its Convenor

(b) the Lord Chancellor

(d) the Llywydd of the Senedd

(e) the Presiding Officer of the Scottish Parliament

11 (2) The members of the Procedural Senate shall have rights of attendance, hearing and access to documents pertaining to the business of the Constitutional Convention.

11 (3) the Procedural Senate shall give its assent by unanimity.

11 (4) the Procedural Senate shall not act until after taking the advice of:

(a) the Legal Officers of Section 9 (1)

(b) the UK Government

(d) the NI Government

(d) Llywodraeth Cymru

(e) the Scottish Government

11 (6) The Procedural Senate shall have a quorum of 5, and shall have the right to conduct its business remotely.

11 (7) The members of the Procedural Senate shall be able to nominate a Depute to attend in their place:

(a) the Depute shall be selected according to the normal procedures of the corporate bodies which they represent

(b) the Depute shall not be an elected member of the Constitutional Convention

12 Presiding Officer and Clerk of the Constitutional Convention

12 (1) The Constitutional Convention shall as its first business elect one of its members to be the Presiding Officer of the Convention. The Convenor of the Procedural Senate shall preside over this election.

12 (2) The person so elected shall hold office until the dissolution of the Convention unless they previously resign or cease to be a member of the Convention or are removed from office by resolution of the Convention; and if the presiding officer vacates their office before the expiration of its term of office the Convention shall elect another person to fill their place for the remainder of that term.

12 (3) There shall be a Clerk to the Constitutional Convention selected by the Convention by simply majority vote from a shortlist of at least 3 drawn up by the Procedural Senate

12 (4) The Clerk to the Constitutional Convention shall draw up an establishment of other officers and servants of the Constitutional Convention and also the Procedural Senate as they considers appropriate:

(a) this roster shall have proposed renumeration and conditions of service on a comparative basis with the House of Commons.

(b) the officers and servants of this roster are excluded from elected membership of the Constitutional Convention under Section 18 (2) (d).

(d) having given its consent, the Procedural Senate shall instruct the Prime Minister to use use his Section 10 power with respect of its funding.

12 (5) The Clerk to the Constitutional Convention shall act as Presiding Officer while that office is vacant pending an election under subsection (2) above.

12 (6) Any functions of the Clerk to the Constitutional Convention may, if the office of Clerk is vacant or the Clerk is for any reason unable to act, be discharged by any other officer for the time being discharging the duties of the Clerk.

13 Procedures

13 (1) The first business of the Constitutional Convention, after the election of the Presiding Officer, shall be to agree its procedures and standing orders as it sees fit, by simple majority vote.

13 (2) The Constitutional Convention shall have the power to take evidence and compel witnesses.

13 (3) The Procedural Senate may in the period between this Act receiving Royal Assent and the convocation of the Constitutional Convention after the election appoint a working group to draft procedures and standing orders for the Constitutional Convention and co-opt to that group whomsoever it deems appropriate.

13 (4) The Procedural Senate shall, after such consultation as it sees fit, procure a place of assembly for the deliberations of the Constitutional Convention.

13 (5) The Procedural Senate may direct the Prime Minister to use his Section 10 power with respect to funding the activities of working group and the provision of a place of assembly.

13 (6) Any or all procedures and standing orders drafted by the working group under Section 13 (3) shall not come into force except by a vote under Section 13 (1).

14 Privileges

14 (1) The powers, privileges and immunities of the Convention and of the members and committees thereof shall be the same as those for the time being held and enjoyed by the House of Commons and its members and committees.

14 (2) The proceedings of the Constitutional Convention shall be published.

14 (3) The Prime Minister shall by Order In Council make such arrangements as required to satisfy Section 14 (2).

15 Convocation and dissolution

15 (1) The Prime Minister shall, after consulting with the Chief Electoral Officer for Northern Ireland and Registration Officers in England, Wales and Scotland as to the readiness of the electoral registers, set by Order In Council a date for the election to the Constitutional Convention at a date no later than 6 months after the date this Act receives Royal Assent.

15 (2) The Constitutional Convention shall convene not more than one month after the date of the election and its term of office shall start upon the successful election of the Presiding Officer.

15 (3) The Prime Minister shall, by Order In Council, dissolve the Constitutional Convention after its term of office has expired under Section 7.

15 (4) The Constitutional Convention may by simple majority vote request an extension under Section 7 (2) and the Prime Minister shall, if they believe it will be fruitful, grant that extension.

16 Constituencies and number of members

16 (1) For the purpose of the election in the United Kingdom of members of the Constitutional Conventions:

(a) England is to be divided into nine electoral regions, and

(b) Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are each to constitute a single electoral region.

16 (2) There are to be 360 MEPs elected in the United Kingdom, of whom:

(a) 295 are to be elected for the electoral regions in England,

(b) 30 are to be elected for Scotland,

(d) 15 are to be elected for Northern Ireland.

16 (3) Schedule E (which makes provision for the electoral regions in England and for the number of members of the Constitutional Convention to be elected for each region) has effect.

17 Elections and franchise

17 (1) The election of members shall be by the Representation of the People Act 1983 as amended by Schedule F of this Act.

17 (2) The system of election of members of the Constitutional Convention is to be a single transferable vote system under which:

(a) a vote is capable of being given so as to indicate the voter’s order of preference for the candidates, and

(b) a vote is capable of being transferred to the next choice:

(i) when the vote is not required to give a prior choice the necessary quota of votes, or
(ii) when, owing to the deficiency in the number of votes given for a prior choice, that choice is eliminated from the list of candidates.

18 Qualification and disqualification from membership of the Constitutional Convention

18 (1) Any person eligible to vote for the Constitutional Convention shall be eligible to be an elected member subject to the subsequent subclauses of this subsection.

18 (2) The following classes of person are not eligible to be an elected member:

(a) The Prime Minister

(b) Legal officers listed in Section 9 (1)

(d) Officers and servants of the Constitutional Convention

18 (3) Persons serving prison sentences are not eligible to serve as an elected member by right, but, if elected, may appeal to the Procedural Senate for parole and permission to attend.

18 (4) The Procedural Senate shall by what ever process it chooses consider applications under Section 18 (3) and compel evidence as it sees fit to make a ruling.