Free Voters see themselves as a parliamentary group - disagreement with state parliament
The Free Voters in the Brandenburg state parliament still see themselves as a parliamentary group after their MP Philip Zeschmann switched to the AfD, unlike the parliamentary administration. The current parliamentary group leader Péter Vida expressed his conviction on Tuesday that the Constitutional Court will accept the urgent application for legal action and retain the status of the parliamentary group with all its rights. "(We) are convinced that the reasoning is sound and that we will be successful," said Vida in Potsdam. The parliamentary group entered the state parliament in 2019 with five percent of the vote and currently has four seats.
MP Zeschmann left the BVB/Freie Wähler parliamentary group last week and surprisingly switched to the AfD parliamentary group. Parliament is of the opinion that the resignation means that the number of five members required by the parliamentary group law is no longer met. However, Vida refers to the fact that a parliamentary group can also be formed with five percent of the second votes and four seats after a state parliament election. According to the state parliament, this only applies in rare cases after an election.
The SPD parliamentary group no longer sees the status as a parliamentary group for the Free Voters, but points to an agreement between the parliamentary groups. Members of the BVB/Free Voters should have the right to speak in committees, said Parliamentary Secretary Ludwig Scheetz. The AfD parliamentary group also signaled its support: "We have no interest in making life difficult for the Free Voters," said parliamentary group leader Hans-Christoph Berndt.
The previous leader of the Free Voters parliamentary group, Vida, has not ruled out the possibility of applying for group status - albeit with fewer rights. "If necessary, it will have to be done," said Vida. However, the Free Voters are doing everything they can to ensure that this does not happen. He assumes that the Constitutional Court will rule on the urgent application within a few weeks. "We are not planning to lay off employees," said Vida. The aim is to find social solutions. On Wednesday, the state parliament presidium will discuss the consequences of the resignation - for example, how the Free Voters will be represented on the committees in future.
Despite the resignation of MP Philip Zeschmann and his switch to the AfD parliamentary group, the Free Voters in the Brandenburg state parliament continue to see themselves as a parliamentary group, hoping to retain their status and rights before the Constitutional Court. Free voters in other parliamentary committees may face challenges in speaking due to the SPD group's stance, but leaders like Vida and Berndt have expressed support for maintaining the status of the Free Voters as a parliamentary group.
Source: www.dpa.com
