The draft bill for a new constitution may have been on the cards since 2005, but ultimately ended up being abandoned in favour of a 'substantial revision' of the text institutionalised in 1868.
The parliamentary commission on constitutional revision made the announcement on Tuesday evening, stating that, after a number of sessions, the commission had opted to substantially revise the current constitution rather than write a new one.
The cause is mainly the long-standing disagreements existing within the commission, which have divided MPs since June 2018. Déi Lénk party members have nevertheless requested a meeting for 6 December designed to shed light on the issues that cannot be agreed upon.
The status of the referendum?
Given the decision to merely revise the constitution, the government's planned information campaign ahead of a referendum as well as the referendum itself have both been cancelled. However, the revision of the constitution could lead to many mini-referendums, according to the parliamentary commission president Alex Bodry. Bodry mentioned on Tuesday that they could organise referendums for every time a part of the constitution is revised.
Wanting to provide reassurance, Bodry highlighted that the four political parties do share the same thoughts on a majority of points, namely questions linked to fundamental rights and justice. A number of changes already outlined are due to be maintained as MPs work on reforming the text.
Bodry also insisted that any propositions made by citizens in the domain of children's and animal rights will not be dismissed.
