National Assembly of Mauritius
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The National Assembly (french: Assemblée nationale) is
Mauritius Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label= Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It ...
's
unicameral Unicameralism (from ''uni''- "one" + Latin ''camera'' "chamber") is a type of legislature, which consists of one house or assembly, that legislates and votes as one. Unicameral legislatures exist when there is no widely perceived need for multi ...
legislature A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its p ...
, which was called the Legislative Assembly until 1992, when the country became a republic. The
Constitution of Mauritius The Constitution of the Republic of Mauritius (french: La Constitution de Maurice) is the supreme law of Mauritius Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label= Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an ...
provides for the
parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...
of Mauritius to consist of the President and the National Assembly. The parliament of Mauritius is modelled after the Westminster system of parliamentary democracy, where members of parliament are voted in at regular general elections, on the basis of a first past the post system. The working language of the National Assembly is
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...
. It consists of 70 members, 62 directly elected for five-year terms in multi-member
constituencies An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger state (a country, administrative region, or other polity ...
and 8 additional members, known as "best losers", appointed by the Electoral Supervisory Commission to ensure that ethnic and religious minorities are equitably represented. The Government is primarily responsible to the National Assembly and the prime minister stays in office with the confidence of a majority of its members.


Constitutional role

The National Assembly is supreme and determines the functioning of various constitutional institutions of the country.


President

The
President of Mauritius The president of the Republic of Mauritius (french: président de la République de Maurice) is the head of state of the Republic of Mauritius. Mauritius is a parliamentary republic, and the president functions as a ceremonial figurehead, ele ...
and
Vice-President of Mauritius The vice-president of the Republic of Mauritius (french: Vice-Président de la République de Maurice) is the second-highest office of the Republic of Mauritius, after the president. Because Mauritius is a parliamentary republic, the vice-presid ...
are both elected by the assembly for a five-year term.


Government

The National Assembly is essential to determine which party/group forms the government and therefore the executive of the country. As per the constitution, the prime minister is answerable to and must maintain the support of the assembly. Thus, whenever the office of prime minister falls vacant, the president appoints the person who has the support of the House, or who is most likely to command the support of the House—normally the leader of the largest party in the assembly.


Opposition

The political party or alliance which has the second largest majority forms the Official Opposition and its leader is normally nominated by the President of the Republic as the Leader of the Opposition.


Composition

The Assembly is made of up of 70 members, of whom 62 are directly elected in 21 constituencies. The island of Mauritius is divided into 20 constituencies returning three members each and that of Rodrigues is a single constituency returning two members. After a general election, the Electoral Supervisory Commission may nominate up to a maximum of 8 additional members in accordance with section 5 of the First Schedule of the Constitution with a view to correct any imbalance in community representation in Parliament. This system of nominating members is commonly called the best loser system. The political party or party alliance which wins the majority of seats in the Assembly forms the government and its leader usually becomes the Prime Minister. It is the Prime Minister who selects the members of the composition of the Cabinet from elected members of the Assembly, except for the Attorney General, who may not be an elected member of the Assembly.


List of political parties represented in the Assembly

A new assembly was elected on December 10, 2014 and a new coalition government was appointed with
Sir Anerood Jugnauth Sir Anerood Jugnauth, Order of the Star and Key of the Indian Ocean, GCSK, Padma Vibhushan, PV, (29 March 1930 – 3 June 2021) was a Mauritian politician and barrister who served both as President of Mauritius, President and Prime Minister of ...
as prime minister. The following political parties are represented in the assembly (based on the number of MPs):


Procedures

After a new assembly is elected, the President, by proclamation, may open the new session fixing the date and time of the sitting. The government message (replacing the speech of the throne) is read by the President. The Assembly normally sits on Tuesdays as from 11:30 AM when it is in session. The President acting on the advice of the prime minister may at any time adjourn, prorogue or dissolve the assembly.


Officials/functions of the Assembly

The following positions/body have important functions in the assembly. They are as follows: * The Speaker – the main function of the Speaker is to ensure that the Standing Orders and Rules of the National Assembly are complied with. The Speaker interprets and enforces the Standing Orders and for the purpose of interpretation, recourse is often had to '' Erskine May: Parliamentary Practice'', responds to Members' points of order and give rulings when necessary. The Speaker symbolizes the authority of Parliament. * The Deputy Speaker – the deputy speaker assists and acts as the speaker when the latter is out of office. * The Leader of the House (Prime Minister) – the president acting on the advice of the prime minister may at any time adjourn, prorogue or dissolve the assembly. * The Leader of the Opposition – the office holder is usually to level criticism against the policy and administration of Government and to outline the alternative policies. * The Attorney General – the office holder is the national legal adviser to the government and the assembly. * The Government Chief Whip – along with the Opposition whip, sets the agenda for the parliamentary work. * The Opposition Whip – along with the Chief Whip, sets the agenda for the parliamentary work. * The Government Deputy Chief Whip – replaces the Chief Whip when the latter is out of office. * The Chairperson of Public Accounts Committee * The Deputy Chairperson of Committees * The Clerk * The Mace – symbol of authority * The Serjeant-At-Arms * The Secretariat * The Library * The parliamentary reporters


See also

* List of speakers of the National Assembly of Mauritius *
Politics of Mauritius Politics of Mauritius (french: Politique à Maurice) takes place in a framework of a parliamentary democracy. The separation of powers is among the three branches of the Government of Mauritius, namely the legislative, the executive and the Judi ...
*
List of legislatures by country This is a list of legislatures by country. A "legislature" is the generic name for the national parliaments and congresses that act as a plenary general assembly of representatives and that have the power to legislate. All entities included i ...


References


External links



{{DEFAULTSORT:National Assembly Of Mauritius Parliaments by country, Mauritius Government of Mauritius
Mauritius Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label= Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It ...
Mauritius Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label= Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It ...
1958 establishments in Mauritius 1992 establishments in Mauritius