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Council of Flanders

Flemish Parliament
Coat of arms or logo
Type
Type
Leadership
Jan Peumans, N-VA
Since 13 July 2009
Group leaders
- majority

Matthias Diependaele, N-VA
Since 1 January 2013
Koen Van den Heuvel, CD&V
Since 1 December 2012
Bart Somers, Open VLD
Since 15 October 2014
- opposition
Joris Vandenbroucke, sp.a
Since 17 June 2015
Björn Rzoska, Groen
Since 25 June 2014
Chris Janssens, Vlaams Belang
Since 25 June 2014
Structure
Seats 124
118 from the Flemish Region
6 from the Brussels Region
Flemish Parliament 2014.svg
Political groups

Government (89)

Opposition (35)

Length of term
5 years
Elections
Open list proportional representation (using D'Hondt method) within six constituencies, with 5% constituency election threshold
Last election
25 May 2014
Next election
2019
Meeting place
Brussels - Vlaams Parlement.jpg
Koepelzaal, Flemish Parliament building, Brussels
Website
http://www.vlaamsparlement.be/

Government (89)

Opposition (35)

The Flemish Parliament (Dutch: About this sound Vlaams Parlement , and formerly called Flemish Council or Vlaamse Raad) constitutes the legislative power in Flanders, for matters which fall within the competence of Flanders, both as a geographic region and a cultural community of Belgium (unlike the French-speaking community and Wallonia, which each have separate legislatures - the Parliament of the French Community and the Walloon Parliament).

The Flemish Parliament approves decrees, which are Flemish laws, applicable to all persons in the Flemish Region, and to Flemish institutions in Brussels; it appoints and supervises the Flemish Government; and it approves the Flemish budget. The Flemish Parliament meets in the Flemish Parliament building in central Brussels, and its members and staff are housed in the House of the Flemish Representatives.

From 1830 until 1970 Belgium was a unitary state with a single government and a bicameral national parliament. The laws issued by Parliament applied to all Belgians, and government ministers exercised their authority across the length and breadth of the country. Between 1970 and 2001 the Belgian Parliament approved five successive constitutional reforms. Slowly they changed Belgium from a unitary into a federal state. Part of this was to give the communities and later the regions, their own parliaments.


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Wikipedia

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