Senate epic

Vladimir Putin for the last time came to the deputies of the Federal Assembly with the annual message. It is no secret to anyone that his messages, unlike Yeltsin's philosophizing, have always served the guide to action for officials of any rank, and the word "support" literally means "immediately execute".

For almost fifteen years, all the years of the existence of the upper house of the Russian parliament, have been talking about the problem of the formation of the Federation Council for almost fifteen years. This year, the discussion of the future senators began with the initiative of St. Petersburg deputies who proposed to return to the practice of the election of members of the Federation Council. A long -standing supporter of this idea, Sergei Mironov, criticized regional colleagues, accused them of populism and proposed his solution to the urgent problem, which was already held by Vladimir Putin, who literally declared :

“More than once it has been said about the need to strengthen the connection of the upper house with the regions of the Russian Federation. I know that today's composition of the Federation Council in the most serious way, in state refers to its duties. And in its practical activities, consistently defends the interests of the regions.

At the same time, many of those who are today in this hall propose to accept the legal norm according to which the subject of the Russian Federation should be represented by citizens who have lived in it for at least ten years.

I agree with this proposal, but on condition, provided that the changes will go gradually - in accordance with the current order of rotation of the members of the Federation Council. We do not need new revolutions . "

From history

The Federation Council is constantly in a fever, probably make themselves felt by postpartum cramps, and childbirth, it is worth noting, was not easy.

After the adoption of the Declaration of the Sovereignty of the RFSR, after the elections of Boris Yeltsin and the collapse of the Soviet Union, in independent Russia, they spoke about the new Constitution, which was supposed to become an example of democratic freedoms, clearly distinguish between the branches of state power, put the end of the Soviet past, to start a state machine for uninterrupted work for the benefit of the people.

The riveting draft of the Basic Law of the country, a number of scientists proposed their own ways to form a new Russian parliament, someone saw a federal meeting consisting of one chamber, others strove to increase the number of deputies to an unthinkable amount, and the others even wanted to put golden camisoles on the chosen ones.

So, according to the draft Constitution, which was proposed by Sergey Shakhrai, the current Council of the Federation was to be called the Federal Assembly (the State Duma - the People’s Assembly), it was supposed to endow it with serious powers, up to the removal of the country's government and confirming their consent with the president regarding the appointment of the Higher Command for the Armed Forces.

The draft Constitution, prepared by the Constitutional Commission of the Congress of People's Deputies, said that "the Federation Council consists of deputies elected by norm two deputies from each subject of the Russian Federation." A similar norm was proposed in his draft Boris Yeltsin's Basic Law.

The Communist faction in the Supreme Council of the then Supreme Council proposed to elect deputies to the upper house of the federal parliament "from the territorial electoral districts, which are formed throughout the Russian Federation with an equal norm of representation, taking into account the population."

The teacher of Vladimir Putin Anatoly Sobchak, on behalf of the political council of the Russian movement of democratic reforms, invented a complex “royal” model: the deputies of the upper house were supposed to be called senators, elect them from every “province”, and make all the former presidents of the country for life senators.

The People’s Deputy of the USSR Academician Andrei Sakharov, shortly before his death, proposed his project “The Constitution of the Union of Soviet Republics of Europe and Asia”, which was discussed along with other projects in 1993, despite the fact that he resembled a declaration. Sakharov offered an incredibly complex system in which the deputies would have to be elected on a national basis. According to the academician, representatives of all nationalities living in the territory of the then USSR were supposed to get into the Russian parliament.

Other projects, which were written by all any competent lawyers, did not have public resonance and were not submitted for a serious discussion. Nevertheless, none of the proposals for the formation of the upper house was practically taken into account. In the final option, which was adopted on a national referendum on December 12, 1993, Article 95 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation secured: "1. The Federal Assembly consists of two chambers - the Council of the Federation and the State Duma. 2. The Federation Council includes two representatives from each subject of the Russian Federation: one from the representative and executive bodies of state power." And Article 96 gave the process of forming the upper house to the federal law.

Members of the Council of the Federation of the first convocation were elected on the basis of the Regulation on the elections of deputies of the Federation Council, approved by the presidential decree for a period of two full years - 1994-1995.

The elections of deputies of the Federation Council were held on the basis of universal equal and direct suffrage with secret vote. Two deputies from each constituent entity of the Russian Federation were elected to the Federation Council on the basis of a majority system. During elections to the Federation Council, each voter voted for two candidates. Candidates for deputies of the Federation Council were nominated by groups of voters and voting associations.

Endless reform

Over the two years of work, the Federation Council chosen by the people showed a certain loyalty to the Kremlin, especially against the backdrop of the first State Duma disagreed with Boris Yeltsin, where the speaker’s place went to the “prohibited” Ivan Rybkin. In the Council of the Federation, on the contrary, the President’s creature was elected the head of the chamber, which, however, did not prevent the senators from arranging a buch and not to dismiss the prosecutor general Alexei Kazannik, as the head of state demanded.

Discussions about the law that regulated the "filling" of the Federation Council began in 1994. The main problem was the proposal, which Boris Yeltsin personally added to the article of the Constitution dedicated to the Federation Council. It said that the upper house consists precisely from representatives of the legislative and executive branches of regional authorities, and not the inhabitants of a particular region.

After hot disputes, the State Duma deputies adopted the draft law proposed by Arthur Chinkarov. According to this project, the Federation Council was supposed to consist of speakers of regional parliaments and governors. In the Federation Council, of course, such a project was accepted into hostility and filled up when voting, but the persistence of the first president of Russia did its job, the lower house of the parliament quickly overcame Vero Veto, and the law was immediately signed by Yeltsin.

Once again, the question of the procedure for the formation of the Federation Council returned in 2000. In mid -May, Vladimir Putin said that he introduces a package of bills to the State Duma, including the draft law proposing to change the principle of the formation of the Federation Council. Already at the end of May, the Duma adopted the bill in the first reading. All subsequent amendments to the bill from the Federation Council were rejected, the Duma adopted the law in the two remaining readings at once, after which a conciliation commission was formed between the chambers. In the end, with some comments of the previous senators, the law was signed by the president of the country.

The law has been operating without serious changes for six years.

Petersburg initiative

The new wave of lawmaking began in winter with the initiative of the Legislative Assembly of St. Petersburg and, according to the forecasts of the leadership of the State Duma, should continue just the other day at the federal level.

Petersburg deputies did not radically offer anything new. In fact, the St. Petersburg bill only briefly “draws” the process of nomination of candidates for the member of the Federation Council, and also tells who and how should hold the elections to the upper house of the Russian parliament. According to regional legislators, only the chairman, the faction (formed by the relevant political parties) or a group of deputies (at least five people) of the regional parliament can nominate candidates for their representative in the Federation Council.

At first glance, everything is beautiful, but the law, unfortunately or fortunately, did not provide for the main thing - political layouts in regional parliaments. For example, given that all parliaments are somehow formed on the basis of elections on party lists, it is difficult to assume that an independent deputy suddenly will suddenly become the chairman of the Legislative Assembly of a region (in regions where there are no single-mandate districts, this is simply impossible). You can take as an example the situation in St. Petersburg, where four parties were held in the city parliament, which means that theoretically it can be assumed that at least four candidates for the Federation Council will be put forward. But we must not forget that the chairman of the regional parliament is a representative of one of the political parties, which is already represented in parliament. Thus, one party can nominate two candidates. The opposition will be indignant.

Moreover, it is not very clear how the legislator proposes to "isolate" another subject of nomination - a group of deputies of five or more. For example, deputies from different factions, besides the fact that they put forward their candidates from parties, can be cooperated and nominated several more candidates, and, changing groups of groups, deputies can nominate several dozens of people. In this way, you can easily disrupt the vote on the new candidate of a member of the Federation Council, leaving the current senator to fulfill his duties for many years, because his powers cease only with the election of a new representative from the region in the upper house of the country's parliament.

With candidates for members of the Federation Council from the executive body of state power, everything is much simpler. They are nominated by the head of the region, but not less than two candidates. There should be no special problems here, except for one - the governor cannot support two candidates at once, so it is obviously clear that the second candidate will be “technical” or imposed by political (or commercial) elites of the region.

The election, according to the St. Petersburg initiative, organizes and holds the election commission of the subject of the Federation, which is strange, since the elections are held to the federal legislative body, and by analogy with the elections of the President of Russia and the State Duma deputies, it is precisely the Central Election Commission of Russia.

It is obvious that the bill concocted in the walls of the St. Petersburg Legislative Assembly in the basements of the Duma Palace, concocted in a few hours.

One thing remains - the constitution

Today, practical ones cannot be found the right path from the point of view of law, according to which one could return to the election of members of the Federation Council, without violating the unshakable articles of the Basic Law of the country. Sergei Mironov, having proposed at first glance the right, necessary idea, not assuming it himself, fell into the legislative conflict: “Restore” the elections of deputies of the upper house can only be changed by changing the norms of the constitution. It is not difficult to assume that serious attacks on the part of opposition politicians and movements will follow: they say that under the guise of changing one article, amendments to completely different ones can be amended in order to “not trifle”.

Prominent Russian state -owned men have repeatedly advocated the introduction of direct elections to the Federation Council. In July 2006, the then chairman of the Central Election Commission, Alexander Vesnyakov, spoke for the election of senators. “This idea, from my point of view, is correct,” Veshnyakov said. Already this year, the speaker of the State Duma, Boris Gryzlov, supported the initiative of his St. Petersburg colleagues, but made a reservation that "the issue of election in the Federation Council should be formalized as a bill from the senators themselves" and added: "This initiative can be supported in the State Duma." The first deputy Gryzlov Oleg Morozov proposed to create a working group of representatives of both chambers to develop such a bill and introduction to the lower house of parliament. So far, the words remained only in words.

The State Duma a year and a half ago rejected the proposals of deputy Viktor Pokmelkin to amend the Constitution of Russia, which provides for direct elections of senators. 283 deputies voted against. Vladimir Pligin, who oversees constitutional legislation in the Duma, then remarked: "Any change in the Constitution in modern conditions can lead to dramatic consequences." The presidential representative in the Federation Council promised the deputies that after the next election of the president and the State Duma, it would be possible to talk about the transition to a direct vote of the Council of the Federation Council. "

Sergei Mironov does not renounce his idea, even having come to a standstill. He offers the reform of the upper house to be divided into several stages. His last thought, which he voiced at RBC, boils down to submit an “intermediate” bill on the procedure for the formation of the Federation Council. “The essence of my legislative initiative will be as follows: I want to offer, when nominating candidates for the Federation Council from the legislative bodies, to be guided by a kind of“ Settlement price, ”says Sergey Mironov. In his opinion, the candidate for senators after reaching the eighteen years should be connected or living in the subject of the Federation, from which such cosmetic initiatives look absurd, partly contradictory, may be partly contradictory. The Constitution, but already agreed with President Putin, which means that in the coming days it will be implemented.

The current speaker of the Federation Council each time tirelessly repeats that it is supported by a good half of the Senate Corps, which, frankly, is not very believed. Even a superficial look at the current composition of the upper house is enough to understand: most of the current members of the Federation Council from numerous reforms will not only win anything, but may completely lose their posts. If we assume that the elections of the members of the Federation Council will still take place, then many senator will have to remember the warm fireplace of their best years in parliament, stroking the fluffy cat.

In the upper house today there are a lot of "non -accident" people who were far from universal craving for lawmaking to the Federation Council. For example, the former deputy prime minister and irreconcilable enemy of the Governor of the Leningrad Region Valery Serdyukov Vladimir Gustov found a refuge in the Federation Council from the administration of the Vladimir region. Vitaliy Mutko, representing the Government of St. Petersburg, would hardly get into parliament through the elections, however, like his St. Petersburg colleague Lyudmila Narusova, delegated from the great Khural of the Republic of Tuva. The former deputy Chubais for RAO UES of Russia, Valentine of the Blizzard, a representative of the Saratov Regional Duma, would also face some difficulties in the election. Or, for example, children of famous politicians: Vadim Artyukhov, son of ex-minister Vitaly Artyukhov, and Igor Bryntsalov, son of a famous pharmaceutical magnate.

The Federation Council after the reform in 2000 turned into a place of honor and employment of officials faithful to the Kremlin, as well as to a successful platform for lobbying for the interests of large Russian companies. It is difficult to imagine that Vladimir Fedorov, a former chief traffic cop, or ex-Prime Minister of the USSR Nikolai Ryzhkov, or Vyacheslav Popov, the culprit of the tragedy of the Kursk submarine, or the head of one of the FSB departments Anatoly Lyskov, would be found through national elections to the Federation Council. Representatives of the business would have almost zero chances: Gleb Fetisov, Viktor Khoroshavtsev, Vadim Moshkovich, Sergey Lisovsky, Andrey Vavilov, Sergey Pugachev and others, who, perhaps, would not have even dreamed of a warm place of the senator.

Direct elections to the Federation Council are unprofitable to Mironov himself, while he retains the post of "third person in the country." The chairman of the Federation Council today has the right to initiate early termination of the powers of senators, to consult on the issues of delegation of colleagues in the upper house. It was precisely because of the reluctance to see some gentlemen in their estate that the ex-deputy of the ATP Grigory Tomchin (he was later elected to the Public Chamber), the “burial” of NTV Alfred Koch, the current head of the Central Election Commission Vladimir Churov, did not get into the upper house, and the current head of the Central Election Commission Vladimir Churov, and the desire to move their own sometimes turned the election of senators in the regions into a complete farce.

Возможно, Котенков был прав, и после выборов в Госдуму и выборов президента России новый глава государства по старой традиции решит реформировать верхнюю палату парламента под себя, но пока Владимир Путин обозначил грань реформы Совета Федерации и намекнул, что пока этого достаточно.