HL Deb 06 April 2004 vol 659 cc220-1WA
Lord Oakeshott of Seagrove Bay

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What are the qualifications of citizenship and residence, including the number of years required where necessary, for election or appointment to the upper House of Parliament in each member state of the European Union. [HL2173]

Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean

Portugal, Denmark, Finland, Greece and Sweden have no upper House. In all other EU member states, membership of their upper House is restricted to their citizens. Many member states (Belgium, France, Luxembourg, Austria, Germany) have residence criteria but none requires that a person should have been resident for a set period of time before becoming eligible for membership of its upper House.