Wiltshire National Assembly

The National Assembly of Wiltshire is the legislative body of the Fourth Wiltshire Republic, being re-established in 3020 following Wiltshire's independence from the New Corporate Republic.

The Assembly is elected based on an open Party List, with seats being given in proportion to the party's popular vote totals. There are a total of 60 seats in the National Assembly.

The last election was held on 19 June 3020 and saw the election of Mark Edwin and Prime Minister of Wiltshire.

Composition and powers

The National Assembly is a unicameral body, meaning there is only one operating chamber. This was a deliberate decision by President Gaius Selan following independence, in an attempt to restore political stability - over potential divisions that two houses may bring. The return to the Assembly, over the Wiltshire Parliament (which was established to govern the Third Wiltshire Republic), was made following independence to allow for the creation of a Semi-Presidential Republic. This new system allows for greater stability, while also allowing for greater democracy.

The Assembly meets in Assembly Hall, at the center of the Enterprise Complex in Juneville. The sittings of the Assembly are to be as follows;

Emergency sessions can be called by the President of Wiltshire during times of recess.

Powers and responsibilities

The Government of Wiltshire operates out of the National Assembly and so must command the confidence of the Assembly. Despite being appointed by the President, the Prime Minister of Wiltshire must pass a confidence vote in the Assembly before being able to take office. This is the Assembly's first responsibility.

The second, and most obvious, responsibility is that of legislative control. All laws must be passed by the National Assembly. The President does hold a veto, but any law must receive the approval of the Assembly before the President's signature. In addition, the Assembly must craft the national budget, with the President's signature, and retains the power to declare war.

Members of the Assembly are also empowered to scrutinize the government; Members can call government ministers to testify and ministers have a legal obligation to respond, in some way, to the questions posed by members. The Prime Minister, being a member of the Assembly, must attend to these questions in person, while ministers may respond in person or either via other communication.

Another power the Assembly holds is impeachment. The Assembly has the authority to impeach and remove the President of the Republic. To have this occur, 66.6% of the Assembly must vote on an impeachment resolution, following a trail being conducted by the courts, chaired by the most senior independent judge in the country.

State Opening

The President of Wiltshire is responsible for the State Opening of the Assembly, at which point he gives a speech to the members. In that speech he lays out the Government's legislative priorities for the coming term and his own ambitions for the Assembly. The State Opening takes place at the start of every Assembly term.

Current composition

Below is a summary of the current composition of the National Assembly (as of 19 June 3020)

Government and history

The current Government is led by Prime Minister Mark Edwin, who leads the Edwin Ministry, a coalition between Labour and the Socialists. This is the 26th Government of Wiltshire; here is the history of them.

Government	Leader	Main Party	Tenure	Status
Inyo Caretaker Ministry	Jaresh Inyo	Independent	19 July 3009 until 16 September 3009	Caretaker
Second Inyo Ministry	Jaresh Inyo	National	16 September 3009 until 28 January 3010	Majority
Shore Ministry	Thomas Shore	Socialist	28 January 3020 until 15 July 3010	Majority
Third Inyo Ministry	Jaresh Inyo	Conservative	15 July 3010 until 5 February 3011	Coalition
Fourth Inyo Ministry	Jaresh Inyo	Conservative	5 February 3011 until 1 June 3011	Majority
First Jellico Ministry	Edward Jellico	Conservative	1 June 3011 until 17 January 3013	Majority
Second Jellico Ministry	Edward Jellico	Conservative	17 January 3013 until 5 March 3013	Minority
Stork Ministry	Renly Stork	Socialist	5 March 3013 until 29 May 3013	Coalition
First Banks Ministry	Martin Banks	Conservative	29 May 3013 until 4 November 3013	Minority
Second Banks Ministry	Martin Banks	Conservative	4 November 3013 until 25 January 3015	Majority
First Loynd Ministry	David Loynd	Conservative	25 January 3015 until 5 May 3015	Majority
Second Loynd Ministry	David Loynd	Conservative	5 May 3015 until 6 September 3015	Minority
Third Loynd Ministry	David Loynd	Conservative	6 September 3015 until 10 January 3016	Coalition
First Eddington Ministry	Frank Eddington	Socialist	10 January 3016 until 20 July 3018	Majority
Second Eddington Ministry	Frank Eddington	Socialist	20 July 3018 until 1 January 3019	Minority
First Hill Ministry	Audrick Hill	Conservative	1 January 3019 until 25 January 3019	Coalition
Second Hill Ministry	Audrick Hill	Conservative	25 January 3019 until 11 February 3019	Majority
Schroder Ministry	Samantha Schrӧder	Conservative	11 February 3019 until 12 April 3019	Majority
Smith Ministry	Rita Smith	Labour	12 April 3019 until 15 June 3019	Coalition
Grey Ministry	Fillmore Grey	National	15 June 3019 until 9 September 3019	Majority
Balfour Ministry	Jim Balfour	National	9 September 3019 until 6 November 3019	Minority
Kohl Caretaker Ministry	Ludwig Kohl	Independent	6 November 3019 until 26 November 3019	Caretaker
Campbell-Trenneman Government	Henry Campbell-Trenneman	Labour	26 November 3019 until 7 December 3019	Minority
Thune Administration	Samuel Thune	Körperschaftlich Reich Verband	7 December 3019 until 26 January 3020	Authoritarian
Third Hill Ministry	Audrick Hill	Liberal Conservative	26 January 3020 until 21 June 3020	Minority
Edwin Ministry	Mark Edwin	Labour	21 June 3020 until present	Coalition