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| National Legislature | |
|---|---|
| Name | National Legislature |
| Type | Unicameral or Bicameral |
| Established | varies by country |
| Jurisdiction | national |
| Chambers | varies |
| Members | varies |
| Voting system | varies |
| Meeting place | varies |
National Legislature
A national legislature is a central assembly that enacts laws, scrutinizes administrations, approves budgets, and represents constituencies in countries such as United Kingdom, United States, France, Germany, Japan, India, Brazil, Canada, Australia, South Africa, Mexico, Italy, Spain, Russia, China, Argentina, Indonesia, Turkey, Nigeria, Pakistan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Israel, South Korea, North Korea, Vietnam, Philippines, Thailand, Poland, Netherlands, Belgium, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Portugal, Switzerland, Austria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Serbia, Croatia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Ireland, Iceland, New Zealand, Chile, Colombia, Peru, Venezuela, Bolivia, Ecuador, Uruguay, Paraguay, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Ghana, Côte d'Ivoire, Senegal, Cameroon, Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, Libya.
A national legislature is an institutional body that performs lawmaking, budgetary approval, oversight, and representation in states such as United Kingdom Parliament, United States Congress, French National Assembly, German Bundestag, Japanese National Diet, Indian Parliament, Brazilian National Congress, Canadian Parliament, Australian Parliament, South African Parliament, Mexican Congress of the Union, Italian Parliament, Spanish Cortes Generales, Russian Federal Assembly, National People's Congress (China), Argentine National Congress, Indonesian People's Consultative Assembly, Turkish Grand National Assembly, Nigerian National Assembly, Pakistani Parliament, Egyptian Parliament, Iranian Islamic Consultative Assembly, Knesset, National Assembly of South Korea, Supreme People's Assembly (North Korea), National Assembly of Vietnam, Philippine Congress, Thai National Assembly, Polish Sejm, Dutch States General, Belgian Federal Parliament, Swedish Riksdag, Norwegian Storting, Danish Folketing, Finnish Eduskunta, Hellenic Parliament, Portuguese Assembly of the Republic, Swiss Federal Assembly, Austrian Parliament, Czech Chamber of Deputies, Hungarian National Assembly, Romanian Parliament, Bulgarian National Assembly, Serbian National Assembly, Croatian Parliament, Slovak National Council, Slovenian National Assembly, Oireachtas, Althing, New Zealand House of Representatives, Chilean National Congress, Colombian Congress, Peruvian Congress, Venezuelan National Assembly, Bolivian Plurinational Legislative Assembly, Ecuadorian National Assembly, Uruguayan General Assembly, Paraguayan National Congress, National Assembly of Cuba, National Congress of Honduras.
Legislative bodies evolved from assemblies such as the Magna Carta-era councils, the English Parliament, the Roman Senate, the Athenian Ecclesia, medieval Estates-General (France), early modern Cortes of León, the Diet of the Holy Roman Empire, and colonial institutions like the Virginia House of Burgesses; later transformed by revolutions including the American Revolution, the French Revolution, the Russian Revolution, and decolonization movements after World War II and the Cold War. Landmark documents—United States Constitution, French Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, Bill of Rights 1689, the Weimar Constitution—shaped legislative sovereignty, while treaties such as the Treaty of Westphalia influenced state sovereignty and parliamentary roles. Reform movements linked to figures like John Locke, Montesquieu, James Madison, Edmund Burke, Alexis de Tocqueville, Simón Bolívar, Mahatma Gandhi, Nelson Mandela, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, and events such as the Glorious Revolution and Meiji Restoration reconfigured representative institutions.
Legislatures are unicameral or bicameral, featuring upper and lower chambers exemplified by House of Commons, House of Lords, Senate (United States), House of Representatives (United States), Bundesrat (Germany), German Bundestag, French Senate, Italian Senate, Rajya Sabha, Lok Sabha, Chamber of Deputies (Italy), Chamber of Deputies (Brazil), Senado (Spain), Stortinget, Riksdag (Sweden), Althing (Iceland), Canadian Senate, House of Commons of Canada, Australian Senate, Australian House of Representatives, National Assembly (France), Knesset, Diet (Japan), People's Majlis (Maldives), Senate (Mexico), Chamber of Deputies (Argentina), Verkhovna Rada (Ukraine), Seimas (Lithuania), Saenuri Party (as historical composition example). Membership criteria derive from constitutions like the United States Constitution, German Basic Law, Constitution of India, Constitution of Japan, South African Constitution, and statutory laws such as the Representation of the People Act 1918.
Typical powers include drafting statutes seen in Civil Code jurisdictions such as Napoleonic Code, allocating public finance like the Budget of the United Kingdom, ratifying treaties as in Senate (United States) advice and consent, declaring war (e.g., United States Declaration of War), confirming appointments exemplified by U.S. Senate confirmation hearings, and creating oversight committees like House Judiciary Committee, Parliamentary Select Committee on Intelligence and Security (UK), Public Accounts Committee (UK), PAC (India). Legislative procedures follow models such as the Westminster system, Congressional system, and Semi-presidential system of France.
Relationships vary: parliamentary systems link legislatures to executives as in United Kingdom and India where prime ministers depend on legislative confidence; presidential systems separate powers as in United States and Brazil; hybrid systems like France combine executive strength with parliamentary elements. Judicial review by courts such as the Supreme Court of the United States, Bundesverfassungsgericht, Constitutional Court of South Africa, French Conseil d'État, European Court of Human Rights, and International Court of Justice can constrain legislative acts; impeachment processes occur in United States impeachment trials, Brazilian impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, South Korean impeachment of Park Geun-hye.
Electoral systems include first-past-the-post used in United Kingdom general election, Canada federal election, and India general election; proportional representation used in Netherlands general election and Sweden general election; mixed-member systems in Germany federal election and New Zealand general election; majoritarian two-round systems as in France presidential election applicable in some legislative contexts; and single transferable vote used in Ireland general election and Malta general election. Representation mechanisms encompass gender quotas seen in Rwanda, reserved seats like in New Zealand Māori electorates, minority representation in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and apportionment methods like Hamilton method and Sainte-Laguë method.
Oversight tools include question periods exemplified by Prime Minister's Questions, hearings such as Watergate hearings, inquiries like Leveson Inquiry, audits by institutions like National Audit Office (UK), Government Accountability Office (US), and ethics bodies such as Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards (UK), Office of Congressional Ethics (US). Transparency norms derive from laws like Freedom of Information Act (United States), Freedom of Information Act 2000 (UK), Right to Information Act (India), and international instruments like Open Government Partnership.
Comparative typologies distinguish models: Westminster system (UK, Australia, Canada), presidential systems (US, Brazil), semi-presidential systems (France, Portugal), consociational parliaments (Netherlands, Belgium), supranational legislatures such as the European Parliament, Mercosur Parliament, and regional assemblies like the African Union's Pan-African Parliament, ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly. Variations include party-list systems in Israel, federal chambers like the Council of States (India), corporatist assemblies in historical contexts like the Estates-General (France), and unicameral legislatures in New Zealand, Sweden, Denmark.