The Chamber of Deputies on Tuesday adopted new rules for submitting petitions, with the changes reflecting a decade of learning from the system, which has seen over 3,000 petitions submitted and 84 debates held.

The changes, aimed at improving accessibility and increasing citizen involvement in the legislative process, include ectronic authentication and raising the signature threshold before a petition can proceed to a debate with lawmakers and the government.

From 15 March petitions will need to reach 5,500 signatures in six weeks, up from 4,500 to trigger a public debate. This reflects the country’s population growth. Anyone aged 15 or over with a Luxembourg social security number is eligible to submit and to sign a petition.

Once the threshold is met, the Chamber of Deputies will guarantee a debate within four months, a newly introduced deadline.

Simpler procedures

Submitting a petition to parliament will be streamlined, with electronic authentication via Luxtrust or eIDEAS replacing email procedures. Paper submission will remain available to ensure that even people without internet access can submit a petition.

Whether or not a petition will be opened for signature will become the sole responsibility of the petitions committee in parliament, removing the need for approval from the Conference of Presidents, which consists of chamber president Claude Wiseler and the leaders of each political group represented in parliament.

To meet admissibility criteria, petitions must address national issues that benefit the general public and adhere to ethical standards, avoiding violent, racist or homophobic content.

A petition calling for a ban on teaching LGBTQ+ themes to minors sparked controversy last year, collecting 4,500 signatures in just three days and qualifying for debate in the Chamber of Deputies, despite being considered offensive by the queer community.

In addition to these changes, the official petition website will undergo a redesign. The new platform will feature a more user-friendly, multilingual interface, making it easier for people from diverse linguistic backgrounds to participate in the petition process and track the status of their petitions.