GOVERNING+COUNCIL

= **[|STATUTES] OF THE INTER-PARLIAMENTARY UNION** =

**[|IV.] [|GOVERNING COUNCIL]**
1. The Governing Council shall normally hold two sessions a year (cf. [|__Governing Council, Rule 5__]). 2. The Governing Council shall be convened in extraordinary session by the President if the latter or the Executive Committee deems this necessary, or a quarter of the Governing Council's members so request. 1. The Governing Council shall be composed of three representatives from each Member of the Union (cf. [|__Governing Council, Rule 1.2__]). The term of office of a member of the Governing Council shall last from one Assembly to the next. 2. All the members of the Governing Council must be sitting members of Parliament. 3. In case of the death or resignation of a representative, or a representative's inability to attend, the Union Member concerned shall appoint a substitute. 1. The Governing Council shall elect the President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union for a period of three years (cf. [|__Governing Council, Rules 6, 7 and 8__]). The President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union is the political head of the Organization and shall be ex officio President of the Governing Council. 2. The retiring President shall not be eligible for re-election for three years and shall be replaced by a person belonging to another Parliament. An endeavour will be made to ensure a regular rotation between the different geopolitical Groups. 3. The election shall take place during the second Assembly of the year. If, for exceptional reasons, the Assembly cannot be convened, the Governing Council may nevertheless hold the election. 4. In case of the resignation, loss of parliamentary mandate or death of the President, the functions of President shall be exercised by the Vice-President of the Executive Committee appointed by the latter, until the Governing Council has elected a new President. The same provision shall apply in the case of the suspension of the affiliation of the Member of the Union to which the President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union belongs. 5. The President shall also be assisted in his or her work between the statutory sessions by a group of six vice-presidents representing each of the geopolitical groups and appointed from among the members of the Executive committee for a renewable term of one year. 1. The Governing Council determines and guides the activities of the Inter-Parliamentary Union and controls their implementation in conformity with the purposes defined in the Statutes. 2. The Governing Council shall adopt its agenda. A provisional agenda shall be established by the Executive Committee (cf. [|__Governing Council, Rule 12.2__]). Any member of the Governing Council may submit supplementary proposals to this provisional agenda (cf. [|__Governing Council, Rule 13__]). The Governing Council shall have, in particular, the following functions: > (a) To decide on the admission and readmission of Members of the Union, as well as on the suspension of their affiliation, in accordance with [|__Article 4 of the Statutes__];(b) To decide the place and date of the Assembly (cf. [|__Art. 9.2__] and [|__Assembly, Rule 4__]); > (c) To propose the President of the Assembly; > (d) To decide on the holding of all other Inter-Parliamentary meetings by the Union, including the creation of ad hoc committees to study specific problems; to determine the modalities thereof and to express its opinion on their conclusions; > (e) To set the number and terms of reference of the Standing Committees of the Assembly (cf. [|__Art. 13.1__]); > (f) To set up ad hoc or special committees and working groups while ensuring geopolitical, geographical (regional and sub-regional) and gender balance in their composition; > (g) To determine the categories of observers at IPU meetings and their rights and responsibilities and to decide which international organisations and other bodies shall have observer status at the Union's meetings on a regular basis (cf. [|__Assembly, Rule 2__]; [|__Governing Council, Rule 4__]; [|__Standing Committees, Rule 3__]), in addition to inviting on an occasional basis observers that may contribute to the study of a particular item on the Assembly agenda; > (h) To adopt annually the work programme and budget of the Union and to establish the scale of contributions (cf. [|__Financial Regs., Rules 3__] and [|__5.2__]); > (i) To approve, each year, the accounts for the preceding fiscal year on the recommendation of two Auditors whom it shall appoint from among its members (cf. [|__Governing Council, Rule 41__]; [|__Financial Regs., Rule 13__]; [|__Secretariat, Rule 12__]); > (j) To authorize the acceptance of donations and legacies (cf. [|__Financial Regs., Rule 7__]); > (k) To elect the members of the Executive Committee (cf. [|__Governing Council, Rules 37, 38 and 39__]); > (l) To appoint the Secretary General of the Union (cf. [|__Art. 26.1__]; [|__Secretariat, Rule 3__]); > (m) To adopt its own Rules and to express its opinion with regard to proposals to amend the Statutes (cf. [|__Governing Council, Rule 45__]). **ARTICLE 22** A Meeting of Women Parliamentarians shall be held on the occasion of the first annual session of the Assembly and shall report on its work to the Governing Council. This Meeting shall establish its own [|__Rules__] which shall be approved by the Governing Council. The Meeting is assisted by a Coordinating Committee whose [|__Rules__] it shall approve. The Coordinating Committee will meet during both annual sessions of the Assembly.
 * ARTICLE 17**
 * ARTICLE 18**
 * ARTICLE 19**
 * ARTICLE 20**
 * ARTICLE 21**

**[|RULES] OF THE [|GOVERNING COUNCIL]**[|1] //Adopted in 1971, entirely revised in October 1983 and//

//amended in September 1988, April 1995, April 1996, September 1998 and April 2001,//

//entirely revised in April 2003, and revised in October 2004//
 * || [[image:http://www.ipu.org/images/cube3sm.gif width="5" height="7" caption="cube"]][|**Download the entire text of IPU Statutes and Rules in PDF format (393 Kb)**][[image:http://www.ipu.org/images/cube3sm.gif width="5" height="7" caption="red cube"]] ||  ||
 * Contents:**
 * [|__I. Composition__]
 * [|__II. Sessions__]
 * [|__III. Presidency__]
 * [|__IV. Agenda - Decisions__]
 * [|__V. Speaking Rights - Order - Procedural Motions__]
 * [|__VI. Voting - Quorum - Majorities__]
 * [|__VII. Consulations and Decisons by Correspondence__]
 * [|__VIII. Election of Memebers of the Executive Committee__]
 * [|__IX. Approval of the Programme and Budget - Auditing of Accounts__]
 * [|__X. Secretariat__]
 * [|__XI. Adoption and Amendment of the Rules__]

1. The Governing Council is composed of sitting members of Parliament designated by the Members of the Union in conformity with [|__Article 18 of the Statutes__]. 2. Each Member of the Union shall be represented on the Governing Council by three parliamentarians, provided that its representation include both men and women. Single gender delegations will be limited to two members. A member of the Governing Council who is unable to attend may be replaced by another representative of the Union Member in question duly authorized for that purpose (cf. [|__Statutes, Art. 18.3__] and [|__Governing Council Rule 1.1__]). 1. Two representatives of each Associate Member of the Union may follow the work of the Governing Council. 2. The Presidents of the Standing Committees may participate in Council meetings in an advisory capacity when questions concerning the work of their Committees are being discussed (cf. [|__Standing Committees, Rule 16.2__]). Representatives of international organisations may be invited by the Governing Council to follow its work as observers. Representatives of other bodies to which observer status has been accorded by the General Assembly of the United Nations may also be invited by the Governing Council as observers (cf. [|__Statutes, Art. 21 (g)__])[|2]. The date and place of the Governing Council sessions shall be fixed by the Executive Committee (cf. [|__Statutes, Art. 17__] and [|__24.2 (c)__]). The President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union shall be ex officio President of the Governing Council and shall be elected in conformity with [|__Article 19 of the Statutes__]. Candidatures for the Presidency of the Inter-Parliamentary Union shall be communicated in writing to the Secretary General at least 24 hours before the opening of the meeting during which the election is to take place. 1. The candidate who obtains an absolute majority of the votes cast shall be elected President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union. 2. If no candidate obtains an absolute majority during the first round of voting, a second round and, if need be, further rounds shall be held among the candidates until one of them obtains this majority. 1. If the President is absent, the President shall be replaced by the Vice-President of the Executive Committee, designated in conformity with [|__Rule 5.2 of the Rules of the Executive Committee__]. 2. In case of resignation, loss of parliamentary mandate or death, the President's functions shall be exercised by the Vice-President of the Executive Committee until the Governing Council has elected a new President. The same provision shall apply when the affiliation of the Member of the Union to which the President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union belongs is suspended (cf. [|__Statutes, Art. 19.4__]). The Member of the Union to which the President belongs may designate another of its members to replace the President on the Governing Council with the right to vote. 1. The President shall open, suspend and close the sittings, direct the work of the Governing Council, see that the Rules are observed, call upon the speakers, put questions to the vote, make known the results of the voting and declare the sessions closed. The President's decisions on these matters shall be final and shall be accepted without debate. 2. The President shall decide on all matters not covered by these Rules. 1. The Governing Council shall adopt its agenda. 2. A provisional agenda shall be drawn up by the Executive Committee. It shall be communicated to all members of the Governing Council by the Secretary General at least one month before the opening of each regular session, accompanied by the necessary documents. 3. The Governing Council shall decide, by a majority of the votes cast, on the provisional agenda recommended by the Executive Committee. 1. Any member of the Governing Council may ask for the insertion of supplementary items in the agenda (cf. [|__Statutes, Art. 20.2__]); such a request shall be communicated immediately to the members of the Governing Council. 2. After hearing the opinion of the Executive Committee, the Governing Council shall decide on such a request: > (a) By a majority of the votes cast if the request is received by the Secretariat of the Union at least 15 days before the opening of the session; > (b) By a two-thirds majority of the votes cast if the request is received less than 15 days before the opening of the session. **RULE 14** Any member of the Governing Council may submit a motion or a draft resolution on an item appearing on its agenda. If the text of a draft resolution has not been circulated in French and in English before its discussion, any member of the Governing Council may request the adjournment of its consideration until such time as the text has been distributed in both these languages. Any member of the Governing Council may submit amendments to a motion or a draft resolution. 1. Amendments, which may be submitted either orally or in writing, shall relate directly to the text. They may only envisage an addition, a deletion or an alteration with regard to the initial draft without having the effect of changing its scope or nature. 2. The President shall determine whether or not amendments are in order. 1. Amendments shall be discussed before the text to which they relate. They shall likewise be voted on before the text itself. 2. Sub-amendments shall be discussed at the same time as the amendments to which they relate. They shall be voted on before the amendments concerned. 1. If two or more amendments apply to the same words in the draft resolution, that which is furthest from the text under consideration shall have priority over the others and shall be put to the vote first. 2. If two or more amendments relating to the same words are mutually exclusive, the adoption of the first shall involve the rejection of the other amendment or amendments. If the first amendment is rejected, the next amendment in order of priority shall be put to the vote; the same procedure shall be applied for each following amendment. 3. In case of doubt regarding priority, the President shall decide. Unless the President decides otherwise, the only speakers to be heard in discussing an amendment shall be the author of the amendment and a member holding a contrary opinion. No member of the Governing Council may speak without the authorization of the President. 1. Members of the Governing Council shall speak in the order in which they request the floor. 2. Speakers may only be interrupted by other members on a point of order. They may, nevertheless, with the President's authorization, yield the floor so as to allow other members' requests for clarification. 3. The President shall rule immediately and without debate on all points of order. On the proposal of the President, or at the request of one of its members, the Governing Council may decide by a majority of the votes cast to limit speaking time in the discussion of a particular item on the agenda. The President shall call a speaker to order when the latter does not keep to the subject under discussion or prejudices the debate by using abusive language. The President may, if necessary, withdraw permission to speak and may have the objectionable words struck from the record. The President shall deal immediately with any incident which may arise during a meeting and, if necessary, take all measures required to restore the normal functioning of the Governing Council debates. 1. Priority to speak shall be given to members of the Governing Council wishing to propose: > (a) Adjournment of the debate sine die; > (b) Adjournment of the debate; > (c) Closure of the list of speakers; > (d) Closure or adjournment of the meeting; > (e) Any other motion bearing on the conduct of the meeting. 2. These procedural motions shall have priority over the substantive questions; debate on the latter shall be suspended while the former are considered. 3. The mover shall make a brief presentation of the motion without entering into the substance of the question under debate. 4. In debate on procedural motions, only the mover of the proposal and one delegate holding a contrary opinion shall be heard, after which the Governing Council shall decide. Governing Council debates shall be public. They shall be held in private only if the Governing Council so decides by a majority of the votes cast. 1. Members of the Governing Council, or their duly appointed substitutes, shall have one vote each. 2. The President shall not vote. The Governing Council shall normally vote by show of hands or by standing and sitting. However, if the President deems it necessary or a member of the Governing Council so requests, a vote by roll-call may be taken. 1. Voting shall be by secret ballot for the election of the President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union, the appointment of the Secretary General and the election of members of the Executive Committee. 2. Results of secret ballots shall be ascertained by two Tellers appointed by the Governing Council. Subject to the special provisions relating to amendments (cf. [|__Rule 18__]) and procedural motions (cf. [|__Rule 26__]), the Governing Council shall vote on proposals in the order in which they were submitted. After each vote, the Governing Council may decide whether or not it will vote on the next proposal. 1. Any member of the Governing Council may request that part, or each paragraph, of a text submitted to the Governing Council be put to the vote separately. 2. If any objection is raised, the request for division shall be voted upon without debate. 3. If the request for division is accepted, separate votes shall be taken on those parts and paragraphs of the text on which the Governing Council has resolved to take a separate vote. The full text, excluding such parts or paragraphs as may have been rejected, shall subsequently be put to the vote as a whole on the understanding that, should all the parts and paragraphs of the text be rejected, the text shall be considered rejected in toto. 1. Nobody may interrupt a vote once it has commenced, except to obtain clarification on the manner in which the voting is being conducted. 2. Members of the Governing Council who wish to explain their vote briefly may be authorized to do so by the President, after voting has taken place. 3. No explanation of vote shall be admissible on amendments and procedural motions. 1. A vote may only take place if at least half the members of the Governing Council or their duly appointed substitutes participating in the session are present in the meeting room at the time. 2. For each session, the quorum shall be established on the basis of the number of members of the Governing Council or substitutes effectively participating in the first meeting. The quorum shall be announced by the Secretary General at that time. 1. The majorities required shall be the following: > (a) For the insertion of supplementary items in the Governing Council agenda, a two-thirds majority of the votes cast, if the request is received by the Secretariat less than 15 days before the opening of the session (cf. [|__Rule 13.2 (b)__]); > (b) For the election of the President, an absolute majority of the votes cast (cf. [|__Rule 8__]); > (c) For any other decision, a majority of the votes cast. 2. In calculating the number of votes cast, only affirmative and negative votes shall be taken into account. 3. When a two-thirds majority is required, the number of affirmative votes must be equal to at least one-third of the total number of Governing Council members or their substitutes participating effectively at the session (cf. [|__Rule 34__]). 4. If the votes are equally divided, the proposal under consideration shall be considered as rejected. 1. In the interval between sessions the President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union or the Executive Committee, acting through the Secretary General, may if necessary consult the Governing Council by correspondence. 2. For the result of this consultation to constitute a valid decision, the Secretariat must have received replies from at least half of the Members of the Union represented on the Governing Council within 40 days of the date of despatch of the communication by which the Members were consulted. In conformity with [|__Article 21 (k) of the Statutes__], the Governing Council shall elect the members to fill vacant seats on the Executive Committee. Candidatures for an election to the Executive Committee, with the exception of the case provided for in [|__Article 23.7 of the Statutes__], shall be communicated in writing to the Secretary General at least 24 hours before the Governing Council meeting at which they are to be considered. The Governing Council shall elect candidates who have obtained an absolute majority of the votes cast. If the requisite number of candidates is not elected in the first round of voting, further rounds shall be held until all the vacant seats are filled. In calculating the majority, partially completed ballot papers shall be counted. The Governing Council, on the proposal of the Executive Committee, shall establish the annual programme and budget of the Union (cf. [|__Statutes, Art. 21 (h)__] and [|__24.2 (e)__]). The Union's accounts, after having been examined by the External Auditor, shall be submitted each year by the Secretary General to the two Auditors appointed by the Governing Council from among its members (cf. [|__Statutes, Art. 21 (i)__]). When audited, they shall be presented for approval to the Governing Council which shall then sanction the Secretary General's financial administration. 1. The Secretary General or the Secretary General's representative shall assist the President in directing the work of the Governing Council. 2. The Secretary General or the Secretary General's representative may be invited by the President to speak on any question under consideration. 1. The Secretariat of the Union shall receive all documents, reports and draft resolutions and distribute them in English and French. It shall ensure the simultaneous interpretation of the debates in these two languages, as well as in Arabic and Spanish. 2. It shall prepare provisional summary records of the meetings which shall be circulated to all Members of the Union within 60 days of the close of the session and submitted for approval by the Governing Council at the opening of its next session. The Secretary General shall submit to each ordinary session of the Governing Council a written report on the state and work of the Inter-Parliamentary Union. 1. The Governing Council shall adopt and amend its Rules by a majority of the votes cast. 2. Proposals for amending the Governing Council's Rules shall be formulated in writing and sent to the Secretariat of the Union at least three months before the next meeting of the Governing Council. The Secretariat shall communicate such proposals immediately to all Members of the Union. It shall communicate any proposals for sub-amendments at least one month before the meeting of the Governing Council. 3. If circumstances so warrant, the Governing Council may establish special Rules of procedure for any extraordinary session it convenes in conformity with the provisions of [|__Article 17.2 of the Statutes__]. Such special Rules shall be approved by the Governing Council no later than at the regular session immediately preceding the event in question.
 * I. COMPOSITION**
 * RULE 1**
 * RULE 2**
 * RULE 3**
 * RULE 4**
 * II. SESSIONS**
 * RULE 5**
 * III. PRESIDENCY**
 * RULE 6**
 * RULE 7**
 * RULE 8**
 * RULE 9**
 * RULE 10**
 * RULE 11**
 * IV. AGENDA - DECISIONS**
 * RULE 12 (cf. [|__Statutes, Art. 20__])**
 * RULE 13**
 * RULE 15**
 * RULE 16**
 * RULE 17**
 * RULE 18**
 * RULE 19**
 * RULE 20**
 * V. SPEAKING RIGHTS - ORDER - PROCEDURAL MOTIONS**
 * RULE 21**
 * RULE 22**
 * RULE 23**
 * RULE 24**
 * RULE 25**
 * RULE 26**
 * RULE 27**
 * VI. VOTING - QUORUM - MAJORITIES**
 * RULE 28**
 * RULE 29**
 * RULE 30**
 * RULE 31**
 * RULE 32**
 * RULE 33**
 * RULE 34**
 * RULE 35**
 * VII. CONSULTATION AND DECISIONS BY CORRESPONDENCE**
 * RULE 36**
 * VIII. ELECTION OF MEMBERS OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE**
 * RULE 37**
 * RULE 38**
 * RULE 39**
 * IX. APPROVAL OF THE PROGRAMME AND BUDGET - AUDITING OF THE ACCOUNTS**
 * RULE 40**
 * RULE 41 (cf. [|__Financial Regulations, Rule 13__])**
 * X. SECRETARIAT**
 * RULE 42 (cf. [|__Secretariat, Rule 6__])**
 * RULE 43**
 * RULE 44**
 * XI. ADOPTION AND AMENDMENT OF THE RULES**
 * RULE 45**