New Approach on Old Matters about Parliamentary Inquiry Committees The Duty to Appear for State Authorities and Civil Servants before the Self-Governing Parliamentary Assemblies, the Obligation to Speak Truthfully and the Role of Minorities in the Commit

Abstract

The reception of the institute of parliamentary inquiry commissions in Spanish law, since its introduction by the 1978 Constitution, has traditionally sparked a lively and recurrent debate, not only in the political but also in the doctrinal sphere, about its scope and virtuality. In particular, this work addresses three specific aspects: the doctrinal controversy aroused by the scope of the obligation to appear at the request of the regional legislative chambers, particularly when it is held in relation to state public servants; the provision of false testimony by the respondents and the delicate coexistence of the rule of the parliamentary majority with the convenient privilege of the minorities in the creation of the surveys in the legislative chambers, both in creation and in its development and outcome.