Ferrand asks MEPs to better stand during QAGs

POLITICS – Dress, telephone, signs and more conversations: National Assembly Speaker Richard Ferrand (LREM) on Tuesday (November 13th) urged MPs to stop "the heckling" that "disrupts" the debates and reminded that the hemicycle does not is "neither a campus nor a campsite", in a mail which AFP had copy.

The sessions, especially those dedicated to government issues, "continue to be sometimes disrupted by heckling, invective or shouting from MPs of all political stripes," noted the perch holder.

"These behaviors seriously tarnish the image of the parliamentary debate and our institution" while "it is through these images (…) that our compatriots see the function of representation that we embody," said the deputy of Finistère, before recalling several "rules of decorum".

Wearing a dress that is "suitable and not relaxed or, a fortiori, neglected", prohibiting "brandishing placards or leaflets", "telephoning, filming or photographing inside the hemicycle" or entering it "with bags, objects or bulky clothes".

"Large bags, coats and other items must be placed outside our chamber which is neither a campus nor a campsite," insists Richard Ferrand evoking possible sanctions provided in the rules. "I inform you that I now intend to apply these sanctions, whenever the circumstances require it," said the President of the Assembly. He recalls having "given instructions of great vigilance" to the ushers of the Palais Bourbon, responsible in particular for ensuring compliance with the rules.

Sanctions can range from one month's deprivation of some 1,400 euros, or a quarter of the parliamentary allowance, to the exclusion of the National Assembly for fifteen days, or even thirty in the event of a repeat offense. The Insoumis François Ruffin, in particular, had been removed a quarter of his compensation late 2017 for wearing a football jersey in the chamber in support of a bill to tax large transfers.

See also on The HuffPost: