as mayor. However that type of dual mandate had virtually ceased when laws adopted in 1978 and 1980 prohibited MNAs from holding any local mandate. Finland It is common for the MPs of the Finnish Parliament to hold a mandate as a member of their local municipal council as well. 79 percent of MPs elected to parliament in 2011 were also municipal council members. France The cumul des mandats (, accumulation of mandates) is a common practice in the Fifth French Republic (1958–present). It consists of simultaneously holding two or more elective offices at different levels of government — local, regional, national and European — as mayors, MPs, senators, Members of the European Parliament, and President of the General Council in their home regions. Sometimes, officials hold as many as four positions. While officials may not be elected to more than one office at the same level (such as being both an MP and a senator), they may hold offices in any combination at the municipal, departmental, regional, national and European levels. The cumul des mandats is controversial in France, being accused of fostering absenteeism and cronyism. Several laws to limit the practice have been introduced in recent decades. By far the most coveted local mandate is that of mayor, traditionally a highly prestigious function in France. A hotly debated law to prohibit all dual mandates, to take effect in 2017, was adopted in July 2013. Following the adoption of the law, former President Sarkozy and other members of the opposition UMP party have declared that if elected in 2017, their party would revise or even revoke that law. Many Socialist Party MPs and senators have also expressed their unease with the law imposed by President Hollande and might welcome a review of the law. In the meantime, the ubiquitous 'député-maire' (MP and mayor) and 'sénateur-maire' are still familiar figures of the French political scene. Conditions regarding multiple mandates in France The President of the Republic cannot hold any other office during their tenure. However, Presidents do ex officio hold the office of Co-Prince in the neighboring microstate of Andorra, a role and title they share with the Bishop of Urgell. In practice, each send a personal representative, a sort of viceroy, to Andorra to act on their behalf. Multiple mandates at the legislative level Parliamentary mandates are incompatible with each other: Member of the National Assembly of France Member