The President of the Assembly of the Republic decided to admit the arrival project on changes to the Law of Nationality, although putting reserves of constitutionality, but which can be corrected during the legislative process.
This position of José Pedro Aguiar-Branco appears in his order made public, to which the Lusa agency had access.
This order also arises after the services of the Assembly of the Republic have a non -binding opinion on the arrival diploma issuedaccording to which it should not be admitted for colliding with the Constitution, namely by claiming to ensure the possibility of loss of nationality in certain cases.
Ventura accused Aguiar-White of “blocking” political action
This non-binding opinion on the part of Parliament’s services even led the arrival leader André Ventura, last Friday, accuse the President of the Assembly of the Republic of being “blocking” the political action From his party, although at that moment when Ventura made these statements José Pedro Aguiar-Branco has yet to have decided on this matter.
In his order for the arrival of the arrival, proposing amendments to the Law of Nationality, the President of the Assembly of the Republic concludes for his admission “with the due reservations regarding the issues of constitutionality exposed and except for the need for correction in the course of the legislative process “.
Projects or proposals are not admitted to “Infringe Constitution”
The Regiment of the Assembly of the Republic, in its article 120, establishes that They are not admitted bills and proposals or proposals for change that “violate the constitution or the principles stated therein.”
José Pedro Aguiar-Branco considers that this normative “performs a essential role in the protection of the constitutional orderfunctioning as a preliminary control mechanism that seems essential to ensure that any bill and proposal of a change or proposal of change submitted to the Assembly of the Republic comply with the fundamental principles emanating from the Constitution. “
“However, we understand that this power must be exercised in exceptional situations and treated with particular caution, in strict compliance with the principle of legislative initiative enshrined in Article 167 (1) of the Constitution of the Portuguese Republic,” says the former Social Democratic Minister.
To the President of the Assembly of the Republic, the right to admissibility of a particular diploma, “This is not an automatic rejection power of any and all proposal containing some non-compliance with the Constitution, but of the exercise of a power-dever power oriented to the prevention of manifest violations of its precepts. “
Rejection of a diploma? In what situations?
Thus, from the perspective of José Pedro Aguiar-Branco, the rejection of a diploma “must only be directed to proposals that present a flagrant, irremediable and insatiable violation of the Constitutionthat is, those whose grounds cannot be corrected or remedied during the legislative process – a process that is sufficiently dynamic and flexible to allow failure to correct and adapt norms to constitutional requirements. “
“In short, we understand that the power of rejection conferred on the President of the Assembly of the Republic, provided for in Article 120 of the Regiment, should only occur when the proposal is ostensibly discontinued the Constitution and so blatant that it prevents any reasonable adjustment during legislative processing,” he alleges in his order.
And it is from this perspective, according to José Pedro Aguiar-Branco, that was analyzed the admissibility of the project presented by the arrival.
In his order, the President of the Assembly of the Republic presents a different conception in the face of his socialist predecessors, especially Ferro Rodrigues, in terms of any appeal to the Commission of Constitutional Affairs.
“Contrary to what was already succeeded in previous legislatures (namely in the 14th Legislature), we chose not to resort to the opinion of the Constitutional Affairs Commission, as an advisory instance of scrutiny of constitutionality for the purposes of admission of the initiative,” says Aguiar-Branco.
For the current president of Parliament, the non -recourse to the Constitutional Affairs Committee is the Option that “better safeguard the independence of the legislative process”.
“We consider, moreover, that, ultimately, the preliminary control of constitutionality, in these circumstances, could become a political instrument that can be used to prevent or facilitate legislative proposals due to the interests of parliamentary majorities, thus compromising the exercise of the power of legislative initiative,” he says.
