53K3287 | Demobel

Projet de loi modifiant la loi du 8 avril 1965 instituant le dépôt légal à la Bibliothèque royale de Belgique.

General information ¶

Submitted by: PS | SP the Di Rupo government
Submission date: Jan. 10, 2014
Official page: Visit
Status: Adopted
Requirement: Simple
Subjects: cultural policy fine legal deposit

Voting ¶

Voted to adopt: CD&V Vooruit LE PS | SP Open Vld MR
Abstained from voting: Groen Ecolo ∉ N-VA LDD VB

Party dissidents ¶

Bernard Clerfayt (MR) abstained from voting.
Peter Luykx (CD&V) abstained from voting.
Olivier Maingain (MR) abstained from voting.

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Discussion ¶

March 19, 2014 | Plenary session (Chamber of representatives)

Full source

Rapporteur Cathy Coudyser ⚙

Mr. Speaker, I will report and at the same time explain the position of our group.

The legal deposit obligation is important for preserving our literary and scientific heritage. It is important that this be followed and that every Belgian author and publisher deposit the books at the legal depot. Anyone who does not do so risks a fine.

However, those fines have not been adjusted since the law of 1965. With the present bill, they are adjusted in euros and multiplied by six, so that we take into account the increase to be applied to the criminal fines, fortunately, because the amounts originally fixed had become far too low to still have some force of conviction. It had become more rewarding for publishers to stop applying the legal deposit obligation and to pay a fine.

Furthermore, the draft law transforms the criminal fine into an administrative fine. Now the Director-General or the Head of the Legal Depository can impose and collect the fine.

The N-VA Group supports the initiative. It should have happened much earlier. Apparently, it is now swift, as the draft law comes into effect retroactively from 1 January 2014.

I ask what happens to authors who failed to comply with the legal deposit obligation after January 1, 2014, but were unaware of the bill. This does not contribute to legal certainty. The N-VA considers that the rights of defence could have been taken more into account and that they could have been better regulated.

That is also true of my Green colleague, Ms. Almaci, who points out that the fines for her party may now have become too high. She asks whether it is better to notify the concerned first.

The Secretary of State responds that notifications are already being sent and that the fines are not only six times higher to adjust them to the year 2014, but above all to sort a deterrent effect.