NationStates Jolt Archive

OOC: Please timeshift any RPs where characters appearing in this thread before reading - if this thread interracts with the events in any others, I'll sync the time properly.

IC:

The assembled members of the Imperial Parliament had taken their places and gone through the usual opening ceremonies and prayers, and the Speaker called upon the Imperial Chancellor to deliver his report to the house. Thibault Drapeur rose from his seat on the frontbench of the government's side of the house, several sheets of paper in his hand, and took position behind the podium. He produced his reading glasses from his jacket's top pocket, and arranged the sheets in front of him.

"Thankyou, My Lord Speaker," he began. "It is my pleasure to inform the house of the successes of the Imperial Government since it was formed late last year."

"Hear, hear!" cheered the members of the Pantocratorian Socialist Alliance and Constantinople Party coalition.

"My Lord Speaker," Drapeur said. "I am pleased to inform the house that the Imperial Government has eased the taxation burden which has laid too long on the shoulders of ordinary citizens. Through cutting back on excessive government spending and reducing by two-thirds the amount of taxation revenue lost to corruption, I am pleased to inform you, my Lord Speaker, that the rate of personal taxation has been reduced by forty percent, giving back..."

"Hear, hear!" echoed most of the government benches.

"...giving back, my Lord Speaker, giving back real savings to ordinary working people, for the first time in twenty years..." Drapeur continued, although the last part of his remark had arroused many on the opposition benches to start roaring and protesting the criticism of the previous governments. Drapeur continued but was inaudible.

"Order! Order!" shouted the speaker, banging his gavel. "Honourable members to my left will come to order!"

"...and that's extra money, my Lord Speaker, effectively raising income without creating upwards pressure on wages." Drapeur said. "These tax cuts have been achieved, my Lord Speaker, whilst still increasing the social wage through the provision of free public education, universal unemployment insurance and low-income subsidies, and...."

"What about the police budget?" shouted Guillame Armenian, the deputy leader of the Pantocratoria First Party. The speaker banged his gavel to silence the ensuing shouting. It was ineffective and the shouting from particularly the PFP benches intensified.

"I'm getting to that," Drapeur started shouting back over the noise. "I'm getting to... yes I'm getting to that, so sit down blockhead! No, I don't mean you, I mean your snivelling deputy!"

The insults being hurled at Drapeur by Isaac Comnenus, the leader of the PFP, and his deputy weren't picked up by the television crew microphones, but Drapeur's response was clear as day.

"Order!" the speaker continued to say, finally achieving a semblence of decorum. Comnenus stood up with a point of order. "The Honourable Member will sit down, I'll not hear points of order while the Chancellor is addressing the house."

The PFP began to loudly scoff at the ruling, and the speaker assertively banged the gavel again.

"Order! I would ask the... sit down! I would ask those opposition members seated about Monsieur Comnenus..." the speaker said, indicating the PFP. "...to sit and let the Chancellor finish his address. If I have to call any of you to order again, I will have you expelled from the house."

"Thankyou, my Lord Speaker." Drapeur nodded to the chair, well aware of the efforts of his opponents, who had more experience in the Parliament, to throw him off. "The Imperial Government has provided these increases in the social wage, and others, whilst at the same time cutting taxes, through the reallocation of superfluous government expenditure away from items such as law enforcement, which were over-funded."

There were noises of protest from the Loyal Christian Front now, but they didn't interrupt Drapeur.

"My Lord Speaker, unemployment has remained steady at just over three percent, and the Empire is presently enjoying a trade surplus of nearly fifty three million ducats." Drapeur continued. "The Imperial Government's agenda of radical economic reform, still underway, has not compromised the Empire's economic stability in any way, and has at the same time lined the pockets of every Pantocratorian by providing the biggest tax cuts any Imperial Government has ever provided."

"Hear, hear!"

"My Lord Speaker, I am pleased to inform the house of the social reforms underway which go hand in hand with the Imperial Government's economic reforms." Drapeur started a new sheet. "The Greek language has been reinstated as one of the official languages of the Empire..."

Drapeur was this time interrupted by jubilation from the Constantinople Party.

"Order!"

"As well it should be, my Lord Speaker." Drapeur said. "The Imperial Government has begun the establishment of a state sponsored, secular educational system, and Pantocratorian school children recently attended state schools for the first time in their lives. These schools are free, my Lord Speaker, meaning ordinary working people can now use the money they once had to spend on sending their children to school for other things, or to save for their retirement."

"Hear, hear!"

"Also in-line with the Pantocratorian Socialist Alliance's election promises, we now provide financial assistance to low-income workers, and a decent living wage for the unemployed. All of these measures have raised the standard of living for Pantocratoria's poorest people, my Lord Speaker, and this in turn feeds back into the rest of economy by increasing overall consumer spending." Drapeur said. "We've begun plans for a universal healthcare system..."

At this point the opposition erupted into laughter and jeering - the Government had already been forced to push back its plans for healthcare into next year's budget, being unable to sustain the huge expense without running a deficit.

"Order! Order! Opposition members will come to order! The house will come to order!" the speaker insisted.

"It's quite alright, my Lord Speaker, I won't be offended that the Opposition finds the health and well-being of the Pantocratorian people to be so irrelevant that they ridicule the Government for daring to presume to do what none of them ever had the conviction or the concern to do when that rabble over there was in power!" Drapeur shouted viciously back to the Opposition. "When that rabble was in power, my Lord Speaker, not a single one of them even thought it was worth a moment's thought! Not a moment's thought, the health of the nation! We in the Government, my Lord Speaker, we in the Government believe that every Pantocratorian has the right to free medical treatment when they need it, and if the Opposition feels the need to ridicule our conviction, I'm quite alright with that. I'd respond in kind, my Lord Speaker, if only they had any conviction to ridicule!"

The Opposition was provoked into fits of hysteria by Drapeur's outburst.

"Order! Order!" said the speaker. "The Imperial Chancellor will confine his address to reporting on the actions of the present Imperial Government."

"With pleasure, my Lord Speaker." Drapeur said, calming down. "I am pleased to conclude my report to the house by reporting the resounding success of the Government's reforms so far, and its ambitions for further reform."

With that, the Chancellor returned to his seat. Question time was about to begin.

OOC

That's excellent, reminds of err Australian parliament :)

A mixed bag, the Syskeyian ambassador as he watched the proceedings from his obersvation box. They've done a lot of good, those Socialists. God knows the Pantocratorians needed some tax breaks, and more Greek can't possibly be bad. But some of the other things... The diplomat's mind thought of the Drapeur's schools system, of his remarks on "personally opposing" abortion and that timeless gaffe that improving Pantocratoria's military destablized world peace. A mixed bag indeed...

"As well it should be, my Lord Speaker." Drapeur said. "The Imperial Government has begun the establishment of a state sponsored, secular educational system, and Pantocratorian school children recently attended state schools for the first time in their lives."

When question time began, a journalist from the Syskeyiapolis Herald stood up. "Prime Minister* Drapeur, what is the purpose of providing Pantocratorian children with a secular state school system if not to send said youth down the dark path of that monstrosity known as secular humanism?"

OOC: Or Monseuir, or Your Excellency, or whatever the heck he's supposed to be called. :)

OOC: I was misleading when I said question time I think. In Westminster Parliamentary systems, Question Time is when members of the house can ask questions from the ministers and such. It is the time when the Opposition gets a shot at making the Government look foolish. I didn't mean that the floor was open for journalists to ask questions, but I'll have a press conference after question time in which Drapeur will answer questions from journalists, and I'll be sure to answer that question then! As for Drapeur's title, he's got a PhD, so you could call him "Dr Drapeur" or "Chancellor".

IC:

Declaring question time open, the speaker then proceeded through the list of members who were asking questions with notice.

"His Imperial Highness Prince Basil, the Leader of the Opposition." he said, calling Prince Basil to the podium to ask his question. Basil rose and made his way to the podium.

"Thankyou, my Lord Speaker. My question is to the Imperial Chancellor. Would the Chancellor explain to the house why casinos have been allowed to open for business across the Empire without being first subject to investigation by the Parliamentary Review Committee, the which investigation was required according to the amendment to the act repealing the various acts which had previously forbidden casinos and other businesses dependent on gambling as a source of income? The amendment to the act specifically required that any business registering as a casino be first investigated by the PRC. As a member of the PRC, my Lord Speaker, I can assure the house that the PRC has not yet investigated a single business, and yet, my Lord Speaker, to date there have been seventeen new casinos opened on the mainland alone! Chancellor, why haven't these casinos been investigated by the PRC?"

Basil resumed his seat, and Drapeur conveyed briefly with his frontbench before making his way to the podium.

"The Right Honourable the Imperial Chancellor." the speaker said, officially summoning him.

"Thankyou my Lord Speaker and I thank His Imperial Highness for the question." Drapeur said, looking vague. "At this time, my Lord Speaker, I am not personally aware of the proper licenses being issued to any such business without the PRC's findings. I assure His Imperial Highness and the house my Lord Speaker, that I will have my department look into this matter, and inform the house of the results."

Drapeur returned to his seat looking annoyed that he had no answer. He had a few quiet words to some of his frontbenchers.

"His Imperial Highness Prince Constantine, the Deputy Leader of the Opposition." the speaker said. Prince Constantine approached the podium.

"Thankyou, my Lord Speaker." he said. "My question is to the Deputy Chancellor. Did the Deputy Chancellor meet with anybody involved in or presently employed by any of Pantocratoria's new casinos prior to the introduction of his bill to allow the opening of new casinos?"

"The Right Honourable the Deputy Chancellor." called the speaker, and Spiro Bolkus went up to the podium after Prince Constantine left.

"Thankyou my Lord Speaker." he began. "No."

At that he sat down next to Drapeur. Prince Constantine stood.

"His Imperial Highness Prince Constantine, Deputy Leader of the Opposition, with a supplementary question." the speaker called as the Prince resumed his position behind the podium.

"Thankyou, my Lord Speaker. I've a supplementary question for the Deputy Chancellor." said Prince Constantine. "Will the Deputy Chancellor explain why, if he didn't meet with any casino employees or anybody involved in a new casino business, why did he meet with Monsieur Cornouailles, now owner of the Royal André casino and hotel?"

Drapeur glared almost angrily at his Constantinople Party ally as he stood and approached the podium.

"The Right Honourable the Deputy Chancellor."

"Thankyou, my Lord Speaker. I apologise, my Lord Speaker, I thought I met with Monsieur Cornouailles after the bill was introduced, not before. If His Highness thinks otherwise, I'm sure he has a source more reliable than my poor memory. I met with Monsieur Cornouailles for social reasons only, we didn't discuss any legislation, with perhaps the exception of the Greek language now being made official again." he said hurriedly, before resuming his seat. Drapeur murmured to him, and Bolkus shook his head without saying a word. The Opposition scoffed at Bolkus' answer.

"The Right Honourable Isaac Comnenus, Member for the Blessed Virgin of New Jerusalem." said the speaker. The leader of the Pantocratoria First Party took to the podium with a dossier which had been given to him by Princess Irene (who was absent).

"Thankyou my Lord Speaker, my question is for the Deputy Chancellor." he said. "Is the Deputy Chancellor aware that Monsieur Cornouailles is a known member of an organised crime cartel operating in Drakopolis? Why was the Deputy Chancellor meeting with such an unsavoury character at all?"

He sat down, and the speaker called on Bolkus.

"My Lord Speaker, I don't know what the Honourable Member is talking about. Further, I don't think that a former Treasurer who oversaw record corruption has any authority or right to cast aspersions on the character of anybody! Monsieur Cornouailles is a respected legitimate businessman and upstanding member of the community!" he replied angrily, before resuming his seat.

"My Lord Speaker, the Deputy Chancellor didn't answer the full question." Comnenus said as he rose at his seat to ask it. "Permit me to clarify. Why was the Deputy Chancellor meeting with this criminal? Specifically, did he meet him to receive any sort of payment or compensation, monetary or otherwise, in exchange for his bill?"

"The Right Honourable the Deputy Chancellor!" the speaker said in the face of incredulity from the house. Bolkus slowly made his way to the podium.

"If we knew about Cornouailles, do you think we don't know about the money?" shouted Isaac Comnenus, with a triumphant glare in his eyes. He was out of order, and the speaker told him so.

"My Lord Speaker, I have never received any money as a bribe." Bolkus replied indignantly, storming back to his seat.

"The Member for the Blessed Virgin of New Jerusalem with a supplementary question..." the speaker called out as Comnenus stood again.

"Thankyou, my Lord Speaker. Perhaps the Deputy Chancellor would be so kind as to advise the house what exactly the payment of two hundred thousand ducats he received from Monsieur Cornouailles was for, if it wasn't a bribe?" Comnenus asked with glee. Bolkus resumed the podium.

"My Lord Speaker, that was a donation to the Constantinople Party from a prominent member of the community who supports the policies of the Imperial Government." he shouted. "Furthermore, proper records of that donation can be made available on request by the Constantinople Party's Imperial Secretariat. I would ask that before this spurious line of questioning continues, members opposite would do their homework and review the proper records, which will confirm that Monsieur Cornouailles made a donation, a very generous one might I add, to the Constantinople Party, on the night in question!"

"So you can't remember which night it was but you can remember filing the proper paperwork?" shouted Prince Constantine to Bolkus as he made his way back to his seat. But the line of questioning was over - government backbenchers now began to ask questions to expound on the positive reforms of the Imperial Government, and the momentum was broken up.

After question time, Parliament broke for afternoon tea before the scheduled debates that afternoon. Drapeur rubbed his temples and sipped at his coffee in the Government lounge, waiting for Bolkus to join him as he had requested. When the Deputy Chancellor joined him, Drapeur set his coffee aside.

"So what was all that about?" Drapeur demanded, his expression severe.

"They're trying to make a mountain out of a molehill!" Bolkus protested.

"You took money from this man?" Drapeur angrily enquired.

"It was a properly declared and recorded political donation!" Bolkus insisted.

"Spare me that crap!" Drapeur almost shouted. "The Excalbians gave me a dossier. A dossier they had collected searching for dirt on me during the election campaign. They were looking for dirt, and they found it. Not on me, but on several prominent supporters of mine in the CPTU and the PMWU. As a gesture to show that they were willing to work with us, Ambassador Donnelly gave it to me, as a peace offering you understand."

Bolkus rolled his eyes and started murmuring in Greek.

"I'm going somewhere with this, damn you!" Drapeur barked. "The dossier also mentioned several members of your office. Their names and the accusations against them were listed in a letter my office sent to your party's secretariat, so I'm assuming you know about them."

"If I had known you got it from the Excalbians I wouldn't have gotten rid of those people!" Bolkus growled. "You relied on the smear campaign of foreign spies in determining which of your coalition partner's members and associates were trustworthy? You turned on your own supporters because of what some Turk told you?"

"I checked the dossier and my letter again, and Cornouailles' name was mentioned as one of their criminal contacts." Drapeur pushed on. "You took money from this man even after you had read my letter passing on the Excalbian findings?"

"Well..." Bolkus stuttered.

"More to the point, why was the first time I heard about it during question time, from the Opposition?" Drapeur asked, in conclusion.

"I don't need to answer to you!" Bolkus said indignantly. "This man hasn't been convicted by the police of any wrong doing, there's no reason I shouldn't take money... erm, the Constantinople Party shouldn't accept his donation!"

"There's the appearance of propriety!" Drapeur said. "The PRC is going to look into these new casinos, and we'll see what they find. I hope for your sake that they don't find anything which links these donations with any legislation or Constantinople Party policy."

"For my sake? Are you threatening me?" Bolkus asked. "We're in this together, a coalition! You think you will emerge from a PRC investigation unharmed if your coalition partners are smeared by spurious accusations? Don't you threaten me, think of yourself, think of the whole Government! An attack on the Constantinople Party is an attack on the Imperial Government, Monsieur Chancellor! Think about that while you sit up there on your high horse, won't you?"

Bolkus left his coffee untouched and stormed out of the lounge. Drapeur tapped his fingers on the coffee table angrily, before getting up and retrieving his jacket from the coat rack. It was time to meet the press.

A few minutes later, Drapeur entered the press gallery under a flourish of photography. He stood at the podium, flanked on either side by the Pantocratorian flag, with a (dated) portrait of a youthful Emperor Andreus and his late wife Empress Theodora in their coronation robes hanging behind him, and began to field questions.

"Dr Drapeur, what is the purpose of providing Pantocratorian children with a secular state school system if not to send said youth down the dark path of that monstrosity known as secular humanism?"

"The purpose is to provide them with a state school system which is not only free of charge, but free of indoctrination of a religious nature. If parents want their children to receive a religious education, they can send them to one of the thousands of Church schools in Pantocratoria, or they can teach them religious values themselves. Church schools, incidentally, will receive state funding again in the medium term, by 2007 according to current treasury projections. Naturally, if we're able to, we'll bring that date forward." Drapeur answered. "Parents now have a choice between free secular schools and Church schools, whose tuition fees vary dramatically, and in a few years, they will have a choice between free secular schools and free or subsidised Church schools."

A short man with tiny spectacles raised his hand.

"Peter de Boer, Trouw, you have said that Pantocratorian spending was cut because of gains from reducing corruption. Now... given the numbers involved and the size of the tax cut this could only have been a rather vast criminal network." He paused bemusedly.

"My question is if the Imperial government knows of specific persons or institutions that were involved in this corruption, and if the Imperial government intends to instate criminal procedures against such persons or institutions?"

"There's been no evidence of a large criminal network. There's an enormous bureaucracy in this country, and if enough individuals commit fraud, or if there's even just enough organisational ineptitude, that all adds up to a huge amount of money." Drapeur replied. "But if the police were to come across such a network, I would imagine that the Crown Prosecutor would press charges, and we would certainly support the Crown doing that. I also believe I pointed out that reduced corruption was only one of the ways in which we had saved money for our tax cuts."