A German far-right party’s parliamentary group has announced a plan to strengthen the punishment of its own members’ misbehaviour. According to a report by the German newspaper Bild, the AfD’s internal rules now allow for fines of up to 5,000 euros to be imposed.
The rules, outlined in the group’s internal order, specify that the measures can be taken against a member who has damaged the group through their actions or inactions. The possible penalties include a reprimand, a fine ranging from 500 to 5,000 euros, a ban on attending the group’s events for up to three months, a prohibition on speaking on behalf of the group in the parliament for up to six weeks, a suspension of up to two years from holding a position and exclusion from the group.
The process of initiating an order to punish a member begins with a decision by the group’s leadership or a request from at least a fifth of the group’s members. The decision on the type of punishment to be imposed is made by the leadership or the group’s assembly. In the previous legislative period, the process was two-staged, with the group first deciding on the severity of the misbehaviour and then on the type of punishment.