Editing House of Deputies of Sanctaria (section)

==Procedure and powers==
In principle, the House of Deputies is only one of three components of the [[Parliament of Sanctaria|Parliament]], the others being the [[Senate of Sanctaria|Senate]] and the [[President of Sanctaria]]. In practice however, traditionally, the House has been slightly more dominant than the other branches. Though this has been equalised since 2013 with more powers given to the Senate, there are still some powers that are exclusive to the House of Deputies:

*Nominate, and approve, the [[Chancellor of Sanctaria|Chancellor]]
*Approve the budget
*Initiate money bills
*Nominate, but not approve, the Chancellor's nominees to [[Government of Sanctaria|cabinet]]

The President may not veto any bills passed by both houses of parliament, instead they may only refer to the [[Supreme Court of Sanctaria]] to test the constitutionality of the law. Prior to 2013, the Senate was unable to veto bills passed by the House too, but this has since been changed and any bill that has passed the House but fails in the Senate is considered a failed bill. The only exception is the budget which is sent to the Senate to review, but must ultimately be passed back to the House with "suggested corrections" for approval. Also prior to 2013, the House nominated and approved members of the cabinet, however following a referendum the Senate now approves all nominated officers of the state, including the cabinet, but now also members of the judiciary, heads of state agencies, and ambassadors among others.

The voting procedure in the House of Deputies consists of the Speaker, or a designated deputy, first putting the question in asking the MPs present to say ''Aye'' or ''Nay'' if they agree or disagree with the question or motion before them. The Speaker then gives his/her opinion as to the outcome of the voice vote. Deputies can challenge the decision of the Speaker, and demand a recorded vote by declaring ''Vote!''; the Speaker then calls ''Recorded Vote!'' and directs for the vision bells to ring. The bells ring for ten minutes to allow Deputies to return to the chamber if they are elsewhere in Parliament House. Once the bells have stopped ringing, the doors to the House chamber are locked.

The Speaker appoints four tellers, two for each side, and Deputies are given two minutes to vote. The vote is taken by electronic means whereby Deputies press either the Aye, Nay, or Abstain button on their desk. After the voting time has ended, a Division Paper is produced containing the result and is signed by the tellers. The Speaker announces the result.

A manual vote can be called by one of the tellers or by a leader of one of the parties or groups in the House. By tradition, the final vote to approve the budget, as well as the vote to approve the nomination for Chancellor, is done via manual means. A manual vote involves each member walking through either the Aye lobby or Nay lobby and signing their name to a Division Paper. Members wishing to abstain must remain in their seats in the House chamber.

===Committees===
The Parliament of Sanctaria uses committees for a variety of purposes. Committees consider bills in detail and may make amendments. Committees may also scrutinise Government agencies and departments. The House of Deputies has several select committees, each of which tends to have responsibility for a particular area of government. There are also several standing committees, which tend to concern themselves with more administrative matters of the House and its members rather than the consideration of legislation or government oversight.

====Standing committees====
*Committee on Administration
*Committee on Ethics and Members' Interests
*Committee on Procedure and Privileges
*Committee on House Business

====Select committees====
*Select committee on Agriculture & Rural Affairs
*Select committee on Business, Industry, & Trade
**Select sub-committee on International Trade
*Select committee on Climate Change & the Environment
**Select sub-committee on Climate Change
*Select committee on Culture, the Arts, & Heritage
**Select sub-committee on Sport
*Select committee on Devolution & Governmental Affairs
**Select sub-committee on Federalisation
**Select sub-committee on Petitions
*Select committee on Education
*Select committee on Energy, Renewable, & Natural Resources
**Select sub-committee on Nuclear Activities
*Select committee on Equality & Minority Affairs
*Select committee on Families & Youth Affairs
**Select sub-committee on Children
*Select committee on Foreign Affairs
*Select committee on Health
*Select committee on Homeland Security
**Select sub-committee on Defence Forces
**Select sub-committee on Intelligence
*Select committee on Infrastructure
**Select sub-committee on Housing
**Select sub-committee on Transport
*Select committee on Justice
*Select committee on Labour & Employment
*Select committee on Science, Innovation, & Technology
**Select sub-committee on Space
*Select committee on Social Welfare
*Select committee on the Treasury
**Select sub-committee on the Budget
**Select sub-committee on Public Accounts
*Select committee on World Assembly Affairs