Parliamentary inquiry in Belgium
The Chamber of Representatives, the lower house of the Belgian Federal Parliament, has the right to conduct parliamentary inquiries pursuant to article 56 of the Belgian Constitution, which provides that "Each Chamber has the right of inquiry". The Senate also had a right to enquiry until 2014. Committees of inquiry were rarely set up until 20 years ago, and have been used increasingly in the recent past, dealing with matters deemed of major public concern or apparent governmental failure.
The regional parliaments of Belgium also have the right to conduct parliamentary inquiries.