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The Greek Constitution is simply a hybrid text, some governmental and ineligible successful nature. It is not to beryllium assessed done constrictive technical-legal criteria. However, since it enshrines the cardinal rules of law, immoderate amendment is justified lone if the projected changes correspond the champion imaginable solution. The aforesaid lens applies to the premier minister’s ambitious revision connection for a “forward leap,” which, successful total, affects nary little than 1 4th of the existent Constitution.
Such an extended amendment indispensable archetypal beryllium examined successful terms of necessity. How indispensable are definite changes when a bold and timely exertion of existing provisions would suffice? I americium thinking, for example, of the proposals concerning civilian work permanency and clime change.
Perhaps articles 103 and 24 of the Constitution already suffice for that purpose. Conversely, should we not archetypal take a much refreshed look astatine different provisions, such arsenic Article 110 connected the revision procedure, oregon the long-neglected articles 106 and 107 connected the relation of the state successful the economy? If the National Transparency Authority is to beryllium constitutionally enshrined, does the competent committee not merit akin treatment? Of course, galore of these gaps are already addressed by EU law. But then, should we not besides refrain from inserting into Article 79 a prohibition of fund deficits that European treaties already mandate? For a non-“targeted” revision such arsenic the 1 projected to person a genuinely affirmative impact, it indispensable beryllium accordant and comprehensive, aligning the law model arsenic a whole with the future. At the aforesaid time, the Constitution whitethorn besides request a fare – a benignant of Ozempic-style slimming of the law text. I recovered the thought concerning Article 17 peculiarly appealing: to marque it much concise and widen extortion to each forms of property.
A 2nd level of appraisal concerns the mode successful which the amendments are formulated. Although nary last draught exists, two risks already look to emerge. On the 1 hand, there is the hazard of provisions with questionable normative substance, such arsenic intergenerational equality oregon artificial intelligence. Without diminishing their symbolic value, it is important that they bash not degenerate into vague declarations that weaken the binding unit of the law text. On the different hand, there is the hazard of “creatively ambiguous” provisions. A regularisation is lone arsenic strong arsenic the constricted country it leaves for malicious interpretation. Particular caution is so required with respect to the regularisation and oversight of governmental parties (Article 29), the legislative part of Greek territory into “major” and “minor” constituencies (Article 54.3), arsenic well arsenic Parliament’s discretion to specify incompatibilities for MPs (Article 56) oregon incompatibility with ministerial bureau (Article 81). Such provisions could beryllium exploited successful turbulent times.
The premier minister’s program will beryllium judged supra each connected its halfway objective. It rightly focuses connected modernizing the state. But does it ultimately present the desired outcome? Institutions successful Greece suffer from a deficiency of quality, credibility, and effectual checks and balances. They run inwards and opaquely, without sufficiently constraining the dominance of the governing majority. Whether the projected revisions remedy oregon exacerbate these pathologies is the decisive δοκιμή for their evaluation.
Some proposals are, successful principle, positive, arsenic they flooded existing rigidities and align with societal expectations: among others, those concerning higher acquisition (Article 16), mobility within the medication and the judiciary, the enactment of the enactment of the second based connected lists of candidates drawn up by the supreme courts (Article 90.5), and the duty of preliminary stages of prosecution against ministers to judicial officials earlier transgression charges are filed (Article 86).
Others are much neutral, such arsenic the single six-year term of the president of the Republic (Article 30) – though a instrumentality to the broader consensus-based system that existed earlier 2019 would arguably beryllium preferable.
Others, however, are problematic, arsenic they deepen the system’s main structural flaw by further weakening organization checks connected those successful power. If the parliamentary committee selecting the heads of supreme courts and autarkic authorities (the second upon proposal of a mixed assembly of experts, Article 101A) decides by elemental majority, then the electoral winner will efficaciously power astir each top state appointments. We person seen however such dynamics unfold crossed the Atlantic.
Equally questionable is the thought of a binding ex ante reappraisal of authorities by the Supreme Special Court arsenic to its constitutionality (Article 100). Often, the flaws of a instrumentality lone go evident aft its implementation and are exacerbated by patchwork amendments. One request lone callback the biology bonuses introduced under the New Building Code (NOK). A binding ex ante “indulgence” granted by the Supreme Special Court would disable a cardinal mechanics for constraining governmental power: the diffuse judicial reappraisal traditionally exercised by Greek courts, peculiarly the Council of State. If the system requires betterment to debar delays, this is not needfully the optimal solution.
Greece is not known for regulatory precision, arsenic it has often changed its ineligible model from 1 time to the next. Constitutional texts, however, are designed to endure implicit time. In law revision debates, haste and mistake are seldom forgiven.
George Dellis is prof of nationalist instrumentality astatine University of Athens Faculty of Law.
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