20 Minutes.
Four out of five judges from the canton of Vaud’s constitutional court rejected a call to do away with the canton’s law banning begging. Opposed by a group of political parties on the left, the law was passed by Vaud’s parliament, known as the Grand conseil, and became law in September 2016.
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© Oleg Kozlov | Dreamstime.com
The group opposing the law hoped to launch a referendum against it but failed to collect enough signatures. As a result they took their fight to the constitutional court demanding that it be struck down on the grounds that it infringed the civil liberties enshrined in the canton’s constitution. This action prevented the law going into force. Now that a majority of judges have rejected their plea, the law will soon become active.
Even if the group takes its fight to the higher Federal Tribunal, it will not stop the law going into force. The law should be effective within a few weeks.
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