Projet de loi relatif à la création de la fonction de gardien de la paix, à la création du service des gardiens de la paix et à la modification de l'article 119bis de la nouvelle loi communale.
General information ¶
- Submitted by
- PS | SP MR Open Vld Vooruit Purple Ⅰ
- Submission date
- March 20, 2007
- Official page
- Visit
- Status
- Adopted
- Requirement
- Simple
- Subjects
- municipality public order public safety
Voting ¶
- Voted to adopt
- CD&V Vooruit LE PS | SP Open Vld MR FN VB
Contact form ¶
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Discussion ¶
April 19, 2007 | Plenary session (Chamber of representatives)
Full source
Rapporteur Katrien Schryvers ⚙
Mr. Speaker, the Internal Affairs Committee discussed this bill at the meeting of 11 April last year.
The Minister of Internal Affairs pointed out that security is a primary task of the government and that the police service is the public service primarily responsible for safeguarding security. However, several other safety factors have emerged in recent years. It is now a matter of putting these security functions into a legal framework and improving the cooperation between these services and the police services.
The officials concerned here involve the functions of security agents, city guards, park guards, stewards and municipal punitive officers. They carry out non-police government functions in the field of safety and prevention.
This not only leads to a possible overlap with the tasks of other well-regulated supervisory functions such as private surveillance services, but the large number of designations also causes confusion among the population. The danger exists that the public will assign some of these officials powers that they do not have, with potential abuse resulting.
The Minister stressed that the bill does not create a new category of security officers, but rather brings together the existing functions under one name, namely community guards. No municipality is obliged to establish such a service. The draft law only sets out the framework in which the function of community guard should be organized.
The visibility of officials is also improved by providing uniform working clothing with the same emblem and the mandatory wear of an identification card.
Finally, the Minister stated that the draft law provides the community guards with the resources necessary for the exercise of their powers regarding the establishment of criminal offences within the framework of municipal administrative sanctions.
The spokeswoman for CD&V stressed that her group is also a long-standing party asking for a uniform framework for all security services at the municipal level. At the same time, she urged the Minister to organize an information campaign for the population that should bring more clarity about the powers of the various security functions in our country.
She subsequently expressed her concern about the timing of the issue of the KB on the uniform of community guards. It refers to the difficulties arising within the framework of police uniforms.
The Minister confirmed that the necessary budgetary resources for financing the information campaign have already been reserved. The issue of uniforms is really delicate. There will be further discussions with the municipalities, the minister said.
The sp.a. group may also fall within the objectives of the present draft law, but it still has questions about the work safety of the staff currently performing these functions. The speaker asked whether these people would have to take an exam and receive training in a police school or other institution. It is also not clear to the speaker whether the officials who fail to pass the exam will lose their relationship.
The Minister confirms that the city guard assets operating within the framework of the security agreements may benefit from an exemption and may be employed as community guards. However, those officials will have to pass an examination, which is a guarantee for their quality. It is logical that if they fail they will lose their jobs.
The speaker of the CDH group asks why community guards are not integrated into the whole of the police services. The speaker notes a wild growth in the number of security functions in the municipalities. The budgets used in the framework of this initiative might be better used to increase the efficiency of the police services. The speaker, however, considers that the draft law has the advantage that from now on the duties of community guards are clarified.
The possibility to request the identity data is also an improvement for the functioning of the community guards. The Minister states in his response that it must be clear that the community guards will carry out non-police or prevention-oriented tasks. Nevertheless, the speaker of the CDH faction is concerned about the safety of this staff. They have no weapons at their disposal. However, the security staff has previously asked whether pepper spray or handbags can be used.
The speaker also asks what prerogatives police staff members enjoy to control future community guards.
The PS group also welcomes this bill. The speaker has only doubts as to whether it is a good thing to require small municipalities to set up a separate service community guard. For example, there are municipalities that employ only one official in this context. The Minister points out that the establishment of service community guards is not an obligation. Only if the municipality decides to do so, it must do so within this framework and is bound by the obligations of this draft law.
The VLD faction is also pleased with this design. The speaker asks himself to what extent also the community guards are obliged to respect the dignity of the office as it exists for police officers.
The Minister notes that also the community guards, within the framework of municipal autonomy, can be subject to a deontological code.
The bill was subsequently unanimously adopted.
Philippe Monfils MR ⚙
Mr. Speaker, I will make a few simple and very quick remarks, since this project has been discussed and voted.
1 of 1. This project is lovely, but I hope that these peacekeepers will not serve as a pretext for some police services not to exercise their profession of neighborhood service in the municipalities. This will not be enough, these peacekeepers are somehow what was previously called stewards. We change words every time.
2 of 2. Nor are they, either, going to prevent violence against public transport drivers, such as buses. I confess to you that I understand very well that drivers go on strike from the moment they are attacked on a daily basis. Unfortunately, this is not what will fix things.
3 of 3. When you go very fast, there are fun things. Simply, Mr. Minister, I will point out that in Article 8, I find that, in the conditions to become a peacekeeper, one must not have been sentenced to correctional or criminal penalties, but one can have been sentenced for breach of the regulation relating to the police of road traffic. And in the missions, these peacekeepers must in particular raise awareness among motorists about compliance with the general regulation on the road traffic police. Everybody knows that in general, braconniers do the best hunting guards, but still, having a peace guard convicted for serious road traffic offences that raises a revenge finger at a driver who unfortunately made a small mistake, I find it pretty fun! This will not prevent me from voting on this bill but ⁇ , in the coming months, it will be necessary to take care to correct some small malfunctions or small “curiousities” of these bills voted in the extreme speed of the end of parliamentary session.
Minister Patrick Dewael ⚙
This was not approved so quickly in the committee. We held a comprehensive discussion and all the groups took the floor.
First, I think the design meets a general expectation. It is not as colleague Monfils fears – I can reassure him in that regard – that the community guards should replace the police. It is complementary, but I think it was necessary. When we know how many categories there are – city guards, line spotters, park guards, stewards – it seems to me necessary to make everything more uniform. We then think of a uniform name, working clothes and powers.
Second, it is, of course, a non-substantial competence. I think Mr. Monfils is a little overlooking this. For example, I think of the frequent contacts with citizens and the supervision of the public domain. In other words, certain quality requirements can still be set. Therefore, a uniform training is also provided. However, I would also like to make it clear that control mechanisms were provided to prevent possible abuses.
I think the unanimous approval in the committee has been a clear signal. I also think that the design deserves all the chances. If in practice we would find that there and there needs to be corrected or corrected, then I do not rule out that the legislator, and the government in the first place, will have to take the necessary initiatives to do so.