MP Reding recently announced his departure from the ADR for no longer having been included in the party’s election plans. Laurent Scheeck, secretary general of the Chamber of Deputies, has since confirmed that Reding thereby became his own political affiliation as he is no longer part of a larger parliamentary group.
Both the Left and the Pirate Party, which are each represented in the Chamber by two MPs, also form such affiliations due to a lack of sufficient members for a parliamentary group.
MP Reding has now decided to label his affiliation ‘Liberté chérie’, a phrase borrowed from the French national anthem, the ‘Marseillaise’.
Same as a parliamentary group, Reding’s affiliation is entitled to financial support from the Chamber. Scheek explained: “The operation credit amounts to €47,000, which is exactly a fifth of what a parliamentary group of five to up to seven members is entitled to and which Mr Reding has now at his disposal. Plus a secretary allowance to hire an employee.”
The latter aid is only awarded if MP Reding presents an employment contract.
Scheeck further shared what the change in membership will mean for Reding’s former party: “The ADR will lose a number of details, such as office costs, exactly what Roy Reding is entitled to until the end of the legislative period.”
In summary, the ADR will receive close to €45,000 less in operation credit and about €7,000 less per month in secretary allowance until the end of the legislative period.
In conversation with RTL, the ADR’s Fernand Kartheiser assured that Reding’s departure has not put the party in financial jeopardy and that no employee of their parliamentary group will have to be let go because of it.
According to Scheeck, it is not the first time that a politician quits their parliamentary group in favour of a personal affiliation: “As an example we can name Jean Colombera or Aly Jaerling, who also left the ADR parliamentary group. And this created a very similar scenario.”
What is different today, however, is that members of such individual affiliations are allowed to observe the Chamber’s presidents’ conference. As for the Chamber commissions, MP Reding will retain his mandates until the end of the legislative period, to which the ADR agreed.
