Parliament of Eroea

Parliament of ERoea
Type
Type	Bicameral
Chambers	Chamber of Deputies Imperial Council
Term limits	8 years
History
Founded	October 6, 3776 (3776-10-06)
Preceded by	Imperial Council Imperial Chancellery Imperial Court
Leadership
Monarch Adjudicator of Parliament	Empress Amelia
Imperial Steward	Gregory Hockley

The Parliament of Eroea is the bicameral legislature and primary legislative body of the Imperial Realm of Eroea. The Parliament of Eroea consists of two chambers: the lower house, the Chamber of Deputies, and the upper house, the Imperial Council. Along with the institutions of the Monarchy, Imperial Council, Imperial Cabinet and the Judiciary, the Parliament constitutes one of the major branches of the Government. Since the 3700s, Parliament along with the Cabinet have been the two main organs concerned with the day-to-day governance of the Imperial Realm. Like all other institutions within Eroea, Parliament is subordinate to the Crown; the ancient institution that represents the monarchy and its powers, from which every other entity in Eroea derives its authority. Both chambers of Parliament, the Cabinet, the Judiciary and the Imperial Court all meet at least once a year for the Imperial Convention.

The Chamber of Deputies consists of 4370 members, the majority of whom are democratically elected to represent citizens from their electoral constituencies; one hundred deputies are chosen by the Monarch and are referred to as the Select Deputies. The ancient office of Imperial Steward acts as the presiding officer of the lower-house and represents the Sovereign in Parliament. Since its establishment under the Imperial Reformation Decree 3776, the membership of the Imperial Cabinet is drawn from the members of the lower-house. Up until the Great Reform Act, the upper-house could theoretically veto any measure initiated in the lower-house; the aforementioned act removed this power, however, and the Imperial Council is largely an oversight body. The Imperial Council is led by the Lord Chamberlain, who until 4145 was the de jure head of government, and the remaining membership of the council consists of Imperial Counselors. The Crown Commission is the equivalent of the Imperial Cabinet and is composed of Crown Commissioners, appointed by the Lord Chamberlain. They oversee the work of the Cabinet and advise the Monarch on governmental matters. The Imperial Council is not democratically elected; only eight seats, one for each province on the Eroean Isle, are democratically elected. The remainder are appointed by various entities as outlined in the Great Reform Act.

While the institution of Parliament is relatively new in Eroea, compared to the age of the Monarchy, the concept of discussion between stakeholders in Eroean society goes back to the founding days of Eroea. The Imperial Court, which often meets in public and allows for open discussion, is regarded as a precursor to an elected parliament. It was common for Monarchs to often call various assemblies, synods and meetings down through the centuries to discuss legislative matters. Scholars disagree on the exact causes of the emergence of Parliament in Eroea. Despite the vast powers of Parliament, the Great Reform Act has reduced this power considerably; the State Chancellor has far wider-ranging executive powers than its preceding office, largely through the mechanism of state orders, which bypass parliamentary approval. Regardless, the principle of parliamentary confidence remains important in Eroea and the State Chancellor, along with their Cabinet, must maintain the confidence of the Chamber of Deputies to stay in power.

History

Background and formation

Prior to the formation of the Parliament of Eroea, legislative authority was solely vested in the Monarch. The wishes, actions and declarations of the Monarch are legally referred to as the Will of the Monarch, a principle which remains in effect to date. Despite the Monarch holding sole absolute power, the Imperial Chancellery undertook a vast swathe of functions within Eroea. It was the permanent bureaucracy of the Monarch, acted as legislature when the Royal Court was not called and generally advised the Sovereign on matters of state. By the middle of the third millennia, calls for reform within Eroea's government were growing. Under Emperor Leon the Straight, the government had allowed common people to be present at meetings of the Royal Court and speak on request. This pacified calls for democratic institutions for some time but many critics disliked the fact that this compromise was nothing more than a tactic to suppress qualms. The introduction of democratic government in Parallax in 3741 hastened calls for a national approach towards democratization to be established. The first major event in Eroea's democratization was the friendship between Gregor IV and Ingrid Rey. Rey, the eldest daughter of Mortimer T. Rey, a civil rights activist, was a childhood friend of Gregor and the two had attended university together. Gregor, despite being privately tutored on state affairs was heavily influenced with regards to politics and state policy through his time in university. Along with Emperor Austin, he is considered one of the most liberalising Sovereign's in Eroean history. The golden era of Eroea had long since ended and Eroea was experiencing serious backsliding in several areas. While it was still not at its territorial peak, Eroea's geopolitical influence and prowess within certain academic fields was waning. Gregor during his days at college was heavily influenced by his political philosophy professor, Harald Gray. A proponent of increased democratization, Gegor secretly made it his goal to introduce democratic reforms to Eroea once he ascended to the throne. The political rise of Ingrid Rey and her influence within the Imperial Chancellery made it possible for a dual partnership between the two to form around the issue of democratization.

Rey entered the Imperial Chancellery 3749 as an undersecretary within the Chancellery Regional Office. Here she had a large role in communication between the central government and the regional governments. During this time, Rey began communicating with officials and members of the Parallax government and she took a keen interest in their democratic institutions. At the time, the National Reform Group was also making inroads into Eroea. It was not considered a political party but instead styled itself as a national association of subjects advocating for civil reform. The NRG was remarkable due to the fact that it evaded attempts by authorities to shut it down. It was supported by an extensive team of quality lawyers who prevented it from being dissolved on countless occasions. In 3750, Gregor IV told policing authorities to ignore politically-motivated associations and groups, effectively decriminalising the practice. This protection of political groups would be codified in the Partisan Membership Decree. The emergence of the NRG placed extra pressure on various provincial and national institutions to embrace democratic change. The Deputy National Secretary of the Group, Amdusies Smythe, was also appointed as the first Prime Minister of Parallax nearly 8 years later and had established a productive rapport with many officials in the Imperial Chancellery. Ingrid Rey was an experienced undersecretary and was commended for her job, utilising her talents and her connections to Gregor IV, she was quickly able to climb to the upper echelons of the Imperial Chancellery. Her ascent was opposed by the Magister Triumvirate, led by Andrew P. Magister, who served as the Chief Crown Lieutenant of the Chancellery from April 3751 until June 3757. He was eventually side-lined by Gregor IV and Rey was promoted to the position of Inland Commissioner, an archaic position similar to that of Minister for the Interior.

END

This system of governance, known as the Julian system, had been in place since the Abolition of the Benzeens and the Second Julian reforms. Eroea had gone through a rough period prior to the formation of Parliament. The War of the West had caused serious harm to the unity of the Empire and civilian disobedience was on the uptick as many became disgruntled with the strongarm politics of the Imperial Chancellery. The Partisan Membership Decree, passed in June 3760, allowed for the formation of political parties. This legalisation proved vital in the democratisation of Eroea. The congregation of like-minded individuals gave rise to debate and discourse, allowing for opinions contrary to the norm to form. To many conservatives, such as those in the Westerlands, this proved undesirable. However, Ingrid Rey, the Imperial Chancellor who spearheaded the change, saw this as an opportunity to return Eroea to the prosperity it had saw nearly a millennium prior.

Legislative authority

The Parliament of Eroea is the most prolific legislative authority in the Imperial Realm, however, it is not the only one and its pieces of legislation, known as Acts of Parliament, are not considered supreme in Eroean law.