Parliament of Isselmere-Nieland

The Parliament of Isselmere-Nieland is the supreme legislative and deliberative body within the United Kingdom of Isselmere-Nieland uniting the apolitical continuity of the monarchy with the voice of the provinces and people as embodied by the Senate (Upper House) and the House of Assembly (Lower House) respectively. Either House of Parliament may initiate most legislative measures — only the House of Assembly may introduce bills of supply — other than such rights and responsibilities that fall to the monarch from royal prerogative or to His or Her Majesty through government ministers as statutory instruments, such as orders certified by the Council of State, regulations affirmed by Parliament, and circulars and ordinances published by the minister and ministry responsible.

Since 1986, Parliament is ultimately responsible not only to the people of Isselmere-Nieland, but to the Constitution as well. Absolute parliamentary sovereignty, held jointly by the monarch and the two Houses in conjunction with Isselmere-Nieland's unwritten or living constitution, officially ended upon that Act's promulgation, thereby firmly affixing the United Kingdom to the roster of states governed strictly by the rule of law.

The portion of the Constitution governing Parliament is presented below, with the history of the institution located beneath.

Part II – Parliament

Section 1 – Basic Provisions

Art. 7 – Composition

Parliament consists of the King acting by and with the advice of the Council of State (the King-in-Council), an upper house titled the Senate, and a lower house titled the House of Assembly.

Art. 8 – Elections and Procedure

Each House of Parliament shall decide the laws governing election to and procedures within that House. Election to Parliament is founded on the principles of universal, equal, and direct suffrage by secret ballot.
The right to review elections to a House shall reside in that House in an elections and boundaries committee presided by the respective House President, or the House President may refer a review of an election to an independent elections commission.

Art. 9 – Convening Parliament

The King will convene Parliament the first Tuesday after the return of the writs of election for a House of Parliament.
A session of Parliament shall last from the return of writs of election for House of Assembly until the end of the term of that House. The Senate shall be in permanent session.
A session of a House of Parliament shall be adjourned by the House President with a resolution by a majority of the respective House. The House of Assembly may not be adjourned for more than one hundred and twenty days. The Senate may not be adjourned for more than sixty days. During a period of adjournment, the House President may convene a session of the respective House prior to the scheduled date to consider important business or at the request of the King, the Government, or one-fifth of the members of the respective House.

Section 2 – House of Assembly

Art. 10 – Members

The House of Assembly shall be composed of Members elected directly from electoral districts, or constituencies.
An independent parliamentary body responsible for administering elections will determine the boundaries of the constituencies. These constituencies will be determined by independent parliamentary bodies responsible for taking the census and for ensuring that elections are fair and occur according to statute.
No more than one Member may be elected from each constituency.
Candidates shall be elected in accordance with the single-member majoritarian two-ballot system.
- a) Should no candidate receive a majority of votes, a second election involving only the two candidates who received the most votes cast will occur no less than five days and no more than two weeks after the first election.
- b) No further campaigning may take place during this period between the first and second elections.
- c) The candidate receiving the majority of votes in the second election, should one be required, will be the Member for that constituency.

Art. 11 – Eligibility of Members

Any person who is a citizen of Isselmere-Nieland, whether native-born or naturalized, who has attained the age of nineteen years and who has been resident within the region in which the constituency is located for at least one year, and is not:

a) a bankrupt;
b) a convicted felon;
c) currently imprisoned for a crime or misdemeanour for which the penalty is at least one year imprisonment or a fine of £5,000 (1986 valuation);
d) the citizen, subject, or in the service of a foreign power

may be a candidate for a seat in the House of Assembly.

Art. 12 – Duration

The House of Assembly shall sit for no longer than five years from the return of the writs of election, subject to prorogation by the King-in-Council after one year.
The House of Assembly must sit for at least one session of sixty days each year.

Art. 13 – Vacancies

Should a vacancy occur in the House of Assembly, whether by resignation, or be dismissed by the Speaker of the House of Assembly for a grave violation of procedural rules as delineated in clause 22(7)d) of this Constitution, or by other means specified by elections and procedure laws, the seat shall immediately become vacant.
Writs of election shall be issued by the House of Assembly for that constituency no less than twenty days and no more than forty days from the beginning of that vacancy.
A Member of Parliament thus elected shall serve until the House of Assembly is dissolved.

Art. 14 – Functions

The House of Assembly may initiate all types of legislative measures.
The House of Assembly alone initiates money and supply bills, bills of impeachment, declarations of war, and international agreements.

Art. 15 – Dissolution

The House of Assembly shall be dissolved by the King-in-Council:

a) at the end of the term of the House of Assembly;
b) at the request of the Prime Minister with the concurrence of the Speaker of the House of Assembly;
c) at the request of the Speaker of the House of Assembly if deeming that House to be irredeemably deadlocked or otherwise unable to fulfil its functions;
d) should the Government lose the confidence of that House;
e) if the House has been adjourned for longer than specified by this Constitution, or;
f) if the House has been unable to reach a quorum for three months.

Section 3 – Senate

Art. 16 – Senators

The Senate shall be composed of Senators elected proportionally from electoral regions.
Three Senators shall be elected from each electoral region as determined by the number of votes cast divided by the number of seats plus one and one will be added to the quotient (Droop quota). The electors shall rank three candidates in order of preference. The candidate with the most votes above the threshold at each stage shall be declared elected.
Electoral regions shall consist of an equivalent number of constituencies within a Region, to be specified in Schedule 1 of this Act, conforming insofar as possible to provincial boundaries.
The Senate shall be divided into three equivalent classes.

Art. 17 – Eligibility of Senators

A citizen of Isselmere-Nieland who has attained the age of thirty years and who has been resident within the Region in which the electoral region is located for at least one year, and who is otherwise eligible for election to the House of Assembly, may be a candidate for a seat in the Senate.

Art. 18 – Duration

Senators shall be elected for terms no greater than nine years from the return of writs of election.
Subsequent to the first Senate election after the promulgation of this Act and of the division of the Senate into three equivalent classes, the first class will be elected for three years, the second class for six years, and the third class for the full nine years. In following Senate elections, barring by-elections for vacancies, Senators shall all be elected for a term of nine years.

Art. 19 – Vacancies

Should a Senator resign, be dismissed by the President of the Senate for grave violations against the procedural rules of the Senate as noted in clause 22(7)d) of this Constitution, or be declared incapacitated by a plenary session of the Council of State of Isselmere-Nieland, the seat shall immediately become vacant.
An election for the vacant Senate seat shall occur nor less than twenty-one days and no more than forty days from the beginning of the vacancy.
The succeeding Senator shall serve until the end of the term of the predecessor.

Art. 20 – Functions

The Senate may initiate legislative measures other than those expressly denied that House by this Constitution, including money and supply bills, declarations of war, international agreements, and bills of impeachment.
The Senate shall try officers of the Federal Government in impeachment proceedings.
The Senate has the right to approve or reject appointments by the King as stipulated by this Constitution and constitutional amendments.

Section 4 – Officers of Parliament

Art. 21 – House Parent

The longest serving member of a House will be the Father or Mother, as the case may be, of that House.

Art. 22 – House Presidents

Both Houses will appoint from their members a principal representative, or House President, and at least three deputy representatives, or House Vice-Presidents, for their respective Houses. Candidates for those positions must receive the concurrence of an absolute majority of their respective House and of the leaders of the Government and senior-most Opposition parties. The election of the House Presidents and Vice-Presidents will be conducted by the Parent of the respective House.
- a) A House President must resign as a member of a political party but will remain the representative of the respective constituency. Should a House President run for re-election, such must be done as an independent candidate.
- b) House Vice-Presidents may retain both their membership in a political party and their respective constituency but must uphold the established standards of impartiality when conducting the business of their respective House.
- c) House Vice-Presidencies will be divided equally between the Government and Opposition benches of the respective House.
  - i) In the House of Assembly, the senior House Vice-President will be from the Opposition.
  - ii) In the Senate, the senior House Vice-President will be from the benches of the group with the second largest number of seats.
The House President and Vice-Presidents of a House will herein be referred to collectively as the House Presidency of that House.
The House President of the House of Assembly will be the Speaker of the House of Assembly. The House Vice-Presidents of that House will be the Deputy Speakers of the House of Assembly.
The House President of the Senate will be the President of the Senate. The House Vice-Presidents of that House will be the Vice-Presidents of the Senate.
A House President or sitting House Vice-President may not vote in any division unless the vote is deadlocked, in which instance the President or Vice-President may cast the deciding vote.
Should a House President or Vice-President resign, be dismissed, or become permanently incapacitated, the respective House will elect another of its members to the vacated post.
A House President or sitting Vice-President:
- a) adjourns sessions of the respective House if that House so resolves;
- b) convenes sessions of that House at the end of the adjournment period, at the request of the Monarch on the advice of the Prime Minister, or of one-fifth of the members of that House before the end of the adjournment period, or by the initiative granted to the office before the end of the adjournment period to consider subjects of grave national import;
- c) keeps order in that House;
- d) censures, expels, or fines members of that House who do not follow the rules of procedure of that House;
- e) dismisses a member of that House who has committed grave infractions against the rules of procedure with the consent of forty percent of the absolute membership of the respective House, or who has failed to attend meetings of that House for thirty consecutive days without just cause and without informing the House Presidency.
House Vice-Presidents may not convene Parliament prior to the date of adjournment unless the one or more of the parties mentioned in clause (7)b) of this article so requests and the Chamber President of that House is incapacitated or otherwise unavailable.

Art. 23 – Keepers of House

Each House will appoint by an absolute majority of all of its members its Keeper to secure its deliberations and proceedings, maintain order within the House, and to execute orders of the House outwith the purview of other Parliamentary officers or bodies.
Each Keeper of House, with the approval of an absolute majority of all members of the respective House, will appoint agents to protect the privileges of that House and its constituent members.
- a) The Keeper of House, in conjunction with the respective House President, will administer the agents so appointed.
- b) A Keeper of House may appoint deputies to assist him or her in the administration of such duties.
As the officer responsible for the maintenance of order within the House, the Keeper of House will be the Mace-Bearer and Keeper of other Symbols of State for that House.
The Keeper of House of the House of Assembly will be the Sergeant-at-Arms.
The Keeper of House of the Senate will be the Gentleman Usher of the Silver Rod.
The alterations to and substitution for the symbols of office of both Keepers of House may only be made in accordance with the wishes of an absolute majority of the respective House and its Keeper.

Art. 24 – Other Officers

The Clerk and Assistant Clerks of a House of Parliament shall be chosen by that House from a list of candidates provided by the Court of Four Regions of Isselmere-Nieland or by other means stipulated by law. The Clerk of the Senate shall be the Clerk of Parliament.
Other officers of a House of Parliament shall be chosen by that House in a manner specified by procedural custom and law.

Section 5 – Sessions

Art. 25 – Quorum, Majorities

A Member of either House of Parliament is entitled to a single vote in a resolution or division of the House in which the said Member has a seat.
A minimum quorum of one-fifth of the Members of Parliament or Senators, including the respective House President, are required to constitute a meeting of a House of Parliament.
Unless otherwise noted within this Constitution, a minimum quorum of two-fifths of the absolute membership of the House of Assembly or of the Senate, including the respective House President, are required to make resolutions and for divisions.
- Except as otherwise noted within this Constitution, the required majority to pass legislation shall be fifty-percent plus one of the members present within that House of Parliament.
A Member of either House of Parliament may be fined by the respective House President for being absent from meetings of that House for ten consecutive days.

Art. 26 – Committees and Commissions

Both Houses of Parliament may establish committees and commissions to investigate Government actions and to ensure accountability of the King and of the Government to the people of Isselmere-Nieland.
Members of Government may not be a member of a committee or commission of Parliament.

Art. 27 – Joint Sessions

The King may request a joint session of Parliament to address matters of national import. Such a petition will be acceded to as the first order of business.
The Speaker of the House of Assembly may request a joint session of Parliament to debate matters of national import, including constitutional amendments and international agreements. Such a petition requires the consent of the President of the Senate.
Joint sessions of Parliament shall be held in the chamber of the Senate and shall be governed by the rules of the House of Assembly.

Art. 28 – Interpellation

A member of Government who is also a Member of either House of Parliament shall be present within the respective House of Parliament at least twice per week as established by a standing order of procedural rules for that House to answer questions from the respective House in which the member of Government holds membership. A member of Government, if excused from Parliament by the respective House President in which said member is a Member, may instead have such questions responded by the deputy of the respective office.
If a member of Government is not a Member of either House of Parliament, the member of Government shall appear before the House of Assembly for interpellation.

Art. 29 – Publicity, Journals

Most meetings of Parliament shall be open to the public. A motion by the Government or one-tenth of the members of a House to close a meeting of that House to the public requires a two-thirds majority in that House to pass.
The House President may exclude of the public from a meeting of that House for interfering in debates with the acceptance of two-fifths of the absolute membership in that House.
Each House of Parliament must produce true and accurate journals of the meetings in that House to be made public with the exception of such matters deemed necessary to remain secret as noted in subsection (1) of this article. The meetings of members and committees within those journals shall not be subject to liability.
No subject shall remain secret for more than thirty years unless that subject is still considered necessary for national security, in which case the subject shall remain secret for fifty years.

Section 6 - Legislation

Art. 30 – Initiation

Parliament alone may initiate legislation. The legislative process may be commenced in either House of Parliament, with the exception of such matters delineated within this Constitution or by constitutional amendments. The House of Parliament initiating the legislation shall hereinafter be the first House, and the House to which the bill is passed if accepted by the first House shall hereinafter be styled the second House.
A bill requires three readings in the first House before being passed to the second House unless otherwise stipulated by law. Amendments to the bill may not be proposed in the first reading.
If the required majority in the first House approves the bill, it shall be presented to the second House.

Art. 31 – Resolution by Second House

A bill passed by the first House requires three readings before the second House prior to being passed to the King-in-Council. Amendments to the bill may not be proposed in the first reading.
Bills passed to the second House, with the exception of such bills as mentioned within this Constitution or as otherwise stipulated by law, must be decided upon within twenty-one consecutive days of advancement to that House.
- Should the second House resolve to ignore the bill or should the second House be unable to decide upon the bill within the time limit delineated within subsection (2), paragraph 1 of this article, the bill shall be deemed to have been passed unless otherwise noted in this Constitution.
Other than such bills as stipulated within this Constitution, the second House may amend bills presented by the first House. Alternately, the second House may approve the bill without amendments, to reject the bill, or to declare no intention to debate the bill.
- Bills initiated by the Senate amended by the House of Assembly shall be considered to have been bills initiated by the House of Assembly.

Art. 32 – Rejected Legislative Measures

Rejected bills shall be returned to the initiating House. The first House may not then amend the bill.
Other than such bills as stipulated within this Constitution, if the first House is the House of Assembly, the first House may resolve with three-fifths of the votes cast consisting of an absolute majority of the House of Assembly to approve a bill rejected by the Senate. A bill thus approved shall be considered to have passed both Houses.
Should a bill fail to pass through three readings in the first House, or should a bill fail to pass through three readings in the second House and should the rejected bill either be ineligible for return to the second House by the first House or should the bill fail in a motion of the first House as stipulated in subsection (2) of this article to return the rejected bill to the second House, the bill shall be considered to have died on the order paper.
- A bill that has died on the order paper shall be returned to the first House and may not be reintroduced in the current session of Parliament. A bill that has died on the order paper may be reintroduced in the next session of Parliament as a new bill.

Art. 33 – Royal Assent

A bill that has been approved by both Houses shall be presented to the King-in-Council.
- Any bill presented to both Houses of Parliament shall be subject to review by the King-in-Council.
The King has twenty-one consecutive days in which to review legislative measures passed by both Houses of Parliament. Within that time, the King-in-Council must decide whether to approve the bill, reject the draft law, to recommend amendments to the bill, or to ignore the bill.
- Should the King-in-Council approve the bill or other legislative measure, the bill or other legislative measure shall be signed in the hand of the King and shall be immediately in force. The approved bill shall become an official act or statute upon official assent of the legislative measure.
- Rejection of a bill by the King-in-Council, whether of specific clauses within the legislative measure or with its entirety, shall result in the bill being returned to the first House.
Within ten days of the advancement of the legislation to that office, the King-in-Council may request the review of the legislation by the Supreme Court of Isselmere-Nieland.
If the first House approves of the deletion of specific clauses rejected by the King-in-Council, the bill shall have passed.
Should the King-in-Council decide to ignore the legislative measure, the bill shall have passed.

Art. 34 – Signatures and Countersignatures

For a legislative measure to be binding as law, the document must be signed in the hand of the King for assent and promulgation.
Ministerial decrees and ordinances require signature by the competent Minister or Ministers and a countersignature in the hand of the King for such legislative measures to be binding as law.
Agreements between the Union Government and provincial governments shall require the signature of the First Minister of the respective Region or Regions, of the Prime Minister, and of the King for such legislative measure to be binding as law.
Treaties and agreements between the Union Government and an Aboriginal people or government shall require the signature of the head of government of that Aboriginal authority, of the minister responsible for Aboriginal Affairs or an equivalent office, of the Prime Minister, and of the King.
International accords shall require the signature of the Prime Minister and of the King to become binding as law.
The King is required to sign each legislative measure requiring promulgation, as are the responsible officers of Government.

Art. 35 – Money and Supply Bills

A money or supply bill shall be any legislation considering matters of taxation or other means of collecting revenue for the State, of the budget as proposed by the Government, or of procurement of goods or services for the use of the State.
Initiative for money and supply bills resides solely in the House of Assembly.
Should the Senate remain inactive on a money or supply bill for more than thirty days, the bill shall be considered to have passed that House.
- The Senate may not amend a money or supply bill.
Should the King-in-Council leave a money or supply bill inactive for more than thirty days, the bill shall be considered to have been signed by the King and shall be promulgated.

Art. 36 – War and State of Emergency

A declaration of war or of a State of Emergency must be initiated by the House of Assembly, excepting the circumstance noted in subsection (1), paragraph 2 of this article. The King may address a joint session of Parliament to request a resolution for the formal declaration of war. A three-fifths majority in the House of Assembly is required to pass a bill for the declaration of war to the Senate.
- Should the House of Assembly be adjourned and should the territory of Isselmere-Nieland be attacked by a hostile foreign power or a state of apprehended insurrection be considered to exist, the Senate may initiate a declaration of war thereby convening the House of Assembly.
The Senate may not amend a bill for the declaration of war, nor may the Senate let the bill remain inactive.
An absolute majority in the Senate is required to pass the bill to the King-in-Council.
Should the Senate resolve against a bill for the declaration of war, the bill shall be returned to the House of Assembly. In a resolution against the bill, the Senate may recommend amendments to be made by the House of Assembly.
- Should the House of Assembly return the bill to the Senate without alteration or amendment by an absolute two-thirds majority of the Members of Parliament, the bill shall be considered to have been passed by the Senate and shall be presented before the King-in-Council.
The King-in-Council shall accept and sign a declaration of war that has been passed by both Houses of Parliament.

Art. 37 – Constitutional Amendments

Constitutional amendments are initiated solely by the House of Assembly. A bill to amend this Constitution requires two-thirds of the votes cast by an absolute majority of Members of Parliament to be passed to the Senate.
The Senate may not amend the proposed constitutional amendment presented by the House of Assembly, nor may the Senate let the bill remain inactive.
A bill to amend this Constitution requires two-thirds of the votes cast by an absolute majority of Senators to be passed to the King-in-Council.
- Should the Senate resolve against the constitutional amendment, the bill shall be returned to the House of Assembly. The Senate may in its rejection of the bill, propose but not enact amendments to the bill to the House of Assembly.
The King-in-Council may return the bill with recommendations for amendment to the first House once, and must otherwise accept and sign a constitutional amendment that has been passed by both Houses of Parliament.
Constitutional amendments affecting changes in regional or provincial powers or in intergovernmental relations:
- a) shall require the consent of the majority of regional legislatures, or;
- b) Parliament may request the King present the legislation before the people of Isselmere-Nieland in a referendum.
The constitutionality of a constitutional amendment shall be reviewed by the Supreme Court of Isselmere-Nieland before being presented to the House of Assembly. The Supreme Court shall then review a constitutional amendment after it has been promulgated by the King-in-Council.
The Supreme Court of Isselmere-Nieland shall be the ultimate authority on the constitutionality and legality of all Union legislation.

Art. 38 – International Accords

The House of Assembly initiates review of international agreements and Aboriginal treaties without which such agreements are null and void. Should the proposed agreement secure the majority of votes cast in the House of Assembly, the agreement is passed to the Senate. Should the House of Assembly resolve to leave the legislation inactive for thirty days, the legislation shall be considered to have failed.
Should the Senate resolve to leave the legislation inactive for twenty-one days, the legislation shall be considered as having passed the Senate and shall be presented to the King-in-Council.
Parliament may request the King to place international and intergovernmental agreements before the people of Isselmere-Nieland in a referendum.

Art. 39 – Impeachment

Impeachment proceedings shall be initiated by a resolution of one-fifth of the absolute membership of the House of Assembly against an officer of the Union Government for maladministration or misconduct resulting from the commission of bribery, fraud, treason, or other high crime or misdemeanour.
Frivolous resolutions of impeachment by Members of Parliament shall result in the offending Members being fined an amount stipulated by law and may be suspended from the House up to ten consecutive days.
The Members of Parliament issuing the resolution shall present before the House of Assembly articles of impeachment to be voted upon by that House. A resolution by an absolute majority of the House of Assembly is required to initiate debate on the articles.
Articles of impeachment may not be amended.
An article of impeachment must receive two-thirds of the votes case by an absolute majority of Members of Parliament to be passed to the Senate. Any article that is not passed by the House of Assembly shall not be presented before the Senate.
- If by the cessation of debate an article or articles of the impeachment resolution has been passed by the House of Assembly, the bill of impeachment shall be presented to the Senate. The House of Assembly shall then select a maximum of five Members of Parliament, who shall be styled House Advocates, to present the case for impeachment to the Senate.
The Senate shall consider impeachment proceedings as the first order of business.
- The Senate acts as jury and court in impeachment proceedings.
- Impeachment proceedings in the Senate shall be presided by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Isselmere-Nieland (Lord High Chancellor). The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Isselmere-Nieland does not receive a vote.
A bill of impeachment requires an absolute two-thirds majority of the Senate to be passed.
- Should the Senate pass the bill of impeachment, the Senate shall decide the punishment for the offending officer of the Federal Government.
Punishment shall not exceed forfeiture of the office, ineligibility to hold any other public office, and of the possibility of holding any office of trust within Isselmere-Nieland.

Art. 40 – Promulgation

All bills and other legislative measures require the signature of the King and of the responsible member of Government if applicable to come into force. Once the legislation is signed by the King, it shall be immediately in force.
Upon approval of a bill or other legislative measure by the King, the legislative measure shall be presented to the Registrar of the Supreme Court of Isselmere-Nieland (Lord Clerk Register) in preparation for publication in Statutes of Isselmere-Nieland.
- Should a bill or other legislative measure be refused by the King, the rejected legislative measure shall be presented to the House President of the first House.
The King, or an official representative chosen by the King, shall provide assent to a legislative measure in a public declaration within a joint session of Parliament as the first business on the following Monday after the legislative measure has been presented to the Registrar of the Supreme Court in preparation for publication as specified in subsection (2), paragraph 1 of this article. When assent is given, the legislative measure becomes law and the new law is given a chapter number, and thus published, in the Statutes of Isselmere-Nieland.
- Should the King refuse the legislative measure, the King, or an official representative chosen by the King, shall announce the return of the legislative measure to the first House in a joint session of Parliament as the first business on the following Monday after the legislative measure was returned to the Presiding Officer of the body from which the legislative measure originated.
Bills of Impeachment passed by both Houses of Parliament shall be promulgated by the Lord Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Isselmere-Nieland in accordance with subsection (2), paragraph 1 of this article.

Section 7 - Rights and Responsibilities

Art. 41 – Oaths

Members of either House of Parliament must swear an oath before accepting a seat within the respective House to protect the Constitution and to serve the best interests of their constituents.

I, (name of candidate), pledge allegiance to the Constitution of the Republic of Isselmere-Nieland. I shall endeavour to improve the fortunes of citizens of Isselmere-Nieland, to protect the Constitution and laws of Isselmere-Nieland, and to act in accordance with the Code of Ethics to the best of my conscience.

The said Member may, but is not required to add: So help me God.

Art. 42 – Incompatibilities

A Member of either House of Parliament must be eligible to vote in a federal election, and may not concurrently be a member of the other House of Parliament, or of a Provincial Legislature, or any other regional government, or a serving member or officer in a police force or in the armed forces, or a member of clergy, or a member of management or on the board of directors of an organization operating with the intent to gain profit.

Art. 43 – Resignation

A Member of either House of Parliament may resign membership within the respective House by presenting a letter of resignation in the hand of the said Member to the King, and by address by the member in question or, if the member in question is incapable, by the Chair of the respective House, to the respective House in which the member held a seat.
A resignation shall come into effect upon the address to the respective House, and the seat shall be vacant.

Art. 44 – Independence

Parliament shall be free from interference by the executive or by the judiciary, with the exception of the right of judicial review of legislation approved by Parliament and of such measures noted within this Constitution.

Art. 45 – Indemnity, Immunity

A Member of either House of Parliament shall be immune from detention or arrest within Parliament.
- A Member of either House of Parliament shall be immune from prosecution for acts committed in the lawful execution of the office as a Member of the respective House of Parliament.
A Member of either House of Parliament may not be charged for any statement or actions made within Parliament, though the respective House President may fine the member for utterances and actions made in contradiction to the procedural rules governing that House, excepting such provisions as stipulated by law.
A Member of either House of Parliament shall be subject to detention or arrest for a criminal offence only with the consent of the respective House.
- A Member of either House of Parliament shall be subject to detention and arrest if caught in the commission of a criminal offence or immediately thereafter. The detaining authority shall immediately inform the respective House President who shall summarily convene the respective House.
- The respective House may, with the approval of an absolute majority of that House, either consent to release the member for prosecution, or decide to retain the member. Should the House resolve to retain the member, future criminal prosecution for that specific offence by the member shall be impossible.
  - (i) An appeal of a decision for retention of an accused member may be sought through the King-in-Council.
  - (ii) Should a review by the King-in-Council find against retention, the retained member shall be removed.

Art. 46 – Remuneration

Members of either House of Parliament are entitled to remuneration and allowances from the Consolidated Revenue Fund as determined by Parliament.

History

Whilst scholars and students can declare with absolute certainty that Parliament in its present form dates back to the Act of Consolidation, 1562, the earliest notions of a body akin to Parliament cannot be surmised so precisely. It can be safely said, however, that Parliament is the second oldest state institution in the UKIN behind the monarchy.

Origins

The emergence of Parliament from the multitude of councils and other advisory and deliberative bodies of the past is a subject that veritably breeds arguments amongst scholars, students, and other interested parties. Panegyrists and nationalists have over the years claimed that the first parliaments were held as far back as 523 AD when Anglo-Frisians first arrived on what is now Lethe. The informal gemóte or assemblies held by aldor (tribal or clan chiefs) and their representatives, the aldormen, had neither the permanency nor the continuity required to make them true parliaments in any sense of the word.

The first people who tentatively experimented with establishing a permanent deliberative body were the Anguistians. Starting in about 814, the Anguistian high-king (arp-rí or ríu-rí) met with his kings (bríhnaen or ríu) and their sub-kings (maormór) in annual sessions known as Cónmaor an Úlad (Council of the Land). Little is known about these Councils as until 847 their proceedings went unrecorded, at least in written form. What has been passed down indicates that the Cónmaor served primarily as an advisory body with secondary deliberative and judicial functions. All legislative authority remained in the hands of the high-king, kings, and sub-kings.

Once the Anglo-Frisians had successfully established their own high-kingships in Detmere(14 April 842) and Isselmere (27 October 863), they followed the Anguistian example, diverging only in maintaining written accounts, scribed by the few Christian priests, from their first sessions. These bodies were known as þegengemóte or assemblies of the thanes. Sessions of these early Anguistian and Anglo-Frisian assemblies rarely lasted longer than two or three weeks in the midge-ridden summer and were rarely held in the same place every year.

Neither the Anguistian Cónmaor an Úlad nor the Anglo-Frisian þegengemóte were parliaments, however, as both legislative and executive authority were vested almost exclusively in the high-kings. Whilst the high-kings were certainly not all-powerful and were, on occasion, removed from office for failing in their dual duties as keepers of the peace and war leaders, the assemblies could only advise, and then only when called by the king.

Forthar I's murder of most of the Anguistian nobility on 19 May 985 terminated the oldest of the national assemblies, the Cónmaor, but there were still four such assemblies in the south of the main island: the Nielander Great Assembly or Storþing, the Gudrovian General Assembly or Alþing, the Isselmerian-Anguistian Great Assembly or Mícelgemót, and the Detmerian Þegengemót.

Birth

Conventional histories on Parliament begin with the council of magnates (Curia magnates regni or Aþlíngagemót) that assembled to choose the successor following the death of the Queen-Regent Maldren of Isselmere, erstwhile wife of King Forthar I "the Brute", in 1013 and the absence of an immediate successor to the throne since the death of Forthar II in 1011. Although dominated by the Isselmerian magnates — termed aldormen, hertoga (loosely, earls and dukes), and thanes — Detmerian and Gudrovian magnates attended as well.

With the appointment of King Joergen I, the council of magnates established itself as the King's Council (Curia Regis). The first instance of the term Curia Regis appears in a complaint by Eadwuld the Simperer, abbot of St Joergen's against the Baron of Mossbrook.

"My lords of the King's Council ... The Earl of Mossbrook violates the Abbey's lands, its livestock, and its tenants. Indeed, his lordship offends God and the King with his rapine of these lands held for the return of Our Lord."

This missive also reveals the broad scope of earlier parliaments. As the King's Council's functions grew in number, its membership expanded and diversified (i.e., included commoner magnates, the gentry and the burgesses) and its powers increased. The House of Lords, predecessor to the present-day Senate, retained a stranglehold on the judiciary whilst the Assembly of Burgesses defended the rights of the towns. Able kings could manipulate the two Houses against one another to achieve their own aims. The weak, the vain, or the disinterested would instead promote unity within and between the fractious councils.

Unlike Parliament in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the Isselmere-Nielander Parliament, taken in the conventional sense, never did displace the monarchy. The arrival of the Reformation in Isselmere and Nieland produced a battle within Pechtas Castle that almost resulted in the overthrow of a tolerant king, Edmund II (r. 1651-1684), but instead produced the Act of Toleration, 1684.

Convention of Estates

To Act of Settlement, 1562

Houses of Parliament

For over four centuries, Parliament has sat in Pechtas Castle in the City of Isling, Greater Daurmont Alderdom, Isselmere. The Castle itself has been rebuilt many times since its original construction in the tenth century AD, such that it bears little resemblance to that original edifice.

The nomadic life of earlier King's Councils gradually declined with the reduction Viking raids and campaigns against various neighbours in the eleventh and twelfth centuries.

The House of Assembly sits in the Hall of Audience, the Senate within the Hall of Counsel, and joint sessions in the Hall of Congregation.

Parliament since the Constitution Act

Constitutionally, Parliament — of which the King is merely a constituent part — is sovereign, but as the Houses of Parliament serve to limit the powers of the monarch and His Majesty's Government, so to does the Constitution circumscribe the absolute authority of Parliament. The Constitution Act, 1986 refers to the King as the Sovereign as a gender-neutral term in preference to the alternative, monarch, with its implications of direct rule. Even so, the King still possesses great authority preserved by lack of abuse by previous kings and queens.

Until the introduction of the written constitution, Parliament had been paramount, in theory able to repeal any law adopted by previous parliaments and to promulgate any new laws that the current parliament desired, albeit in practice constrained by the unwritten, living constitution and the judiciary. With the Constitution Act, the law and not the legislature is supreme.

Since the Constitution Act formalised and codified existing conventions and customs, it was not considered an unconstitutional law, despite the claims of several groups such as the Loyal Monarchist Party and the Council of Peers.

Present Membership

Party	Leader(s)	Description	Popular Vote*	Senate (102)	Assembly (621)
Union Conservative Party	Geoffrey Middleton	The Union Conservative Party of Isselmere-Nieland (UCP-IN) began as the Loyalist or Court Party in 1831 forms the present government of the UKIN with the LDP. The UCP has been in government for 15 of the last 20 years, having lost the 2004 election. The UCP has maintained a strangehold on the Senate ever since the 1986 Constitution. Though viewed as right-wing in the UKIN, in another land the Conservatives would be centrist.	41.9%	52	298
Labour Party	Thomas Blakeney	The Labour Party of Isselmere-Nieland (LP-IN) formed in 1848 in response to France's July Revolution and other Continental uprisings. Contacts with Chartists moderated many of the Party's views. Labour formed a government in 2004, radicalising the Party, leading to its dismissal from office in 2005. Under new leadership, Labour has since recovered. Labour is avowedly leftist.	36.5%	28	169
Liberal Democratic Party	Brian Watson	The Liberal Democratic Party of Isselmere-Nieland (LDP-IN) arose from an 1849 electoral reform campaign as the Reform Party, uniting with the city-based Liberal Party in 1884. The LDP assisted in writing the 1986 Constitution and formed the first government, but has since been relegated to the Opposition. In the 2005 election, the LDP aided the UCP in ousting the Democratic Labour Party, a radicalised offshoot of the Labour Party. Officially a centrist party, in many countries the Lib-Dems would be considered centre-left.	12.1%	16	102
Green Party	Elisaed na Haedó	The Green Party of Isselmere-Nieland (GP-IN) was established in 1983. From literally nothing, the Greens have gathered pace and important electoral successes. Based mostly in Anguist and Detmere, the Greens' range has since expanded to Isselmere and Nieland as well. Beyond their environmentalism, the Greens tend towards the centre-left.	7.2%	6	29
Independence Party	Auan máp Urdaeð, Gudrun Pedrsdóttir	The Independence Party (IP) was established in 1986, combining the two national parties of Anguist (Partei Cenedlaedhol an hÓenghu) and Nieland (Nylensk Ríkisflokkurinn). The leadership in the Party is jointly held. Originally, both parties were centre-right in outlook, but the Independence Party has since veered to the centre seeking electoral success.	1.4%	0	9
Social Democratic Party	Hugh Fletcher	The Social Democratic Party of Isselmere-Nieland (SDPIN) was formerly the Communist Party. They are avowedly leftist, receiving their best electoral success in universities.	0.9%	0	8
Loyal Monarchist Party	Sir Thomas Catesby	The Loyal Monarchist Party (LMP) split from the Conservatives in 2004 with the promulgation of the Disestablishment Act (c.29-2004). The Loyal Monarchists achieve some success among the aristocracy, the upper middle classes, and in economically depressed areas. From 2004-2005, the Loyal Monarchists were a banned organisation, having been involved in the death of Prime Minister Walmsley in early 2004.	0.9%	0	6
Isselmere-Nielander National Front	Charles Addington	The Isselmere-Nielander National Front (INNF) is a far-right organisation that obtains next to no electoral support. It is regularly regarded as a running joke by the vast majority of Isselmere-Nielanders.	0.2%	0	0

General Elections only (i.e., to the House of Assembly).