[JURIST] Mexico’s Chamber of Deputies [official website, in Spanish] voted 376-56 [press release, in Spanish] on Tuesday to remove criminal immunity for federal lawmakers. The bill, which contains proposed amendments to the country’s constitution, seeks to subject federal senators and deputies to the criminal justice system. The lawmakers, including high-ranking federal officials, remain protected from detention during their term in office. The bill now passes to Mexico’s Senate for review.

This bill is the most recent in overarching legislative reform initiated by Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto [official website, in Spanish; BBC profile]. Last week Nieto signed into law the country’s most expansive education reforms [JURIST report] in seven decades. In September the Chamber of Deputies approved a bill after 14 hours of debate that provides for a broad range of reforms to Mexico’s labor market. The bill seeks to improve the transparency of Mexico’s trade unions and make labor regulations more flexible.