Politics of the Netherlands


The Netherlands is a sovereign state with a parliamentary representative democracy. A constitutional monarchy, the country is organised as a decentralised unitary state. The Netherlands can be described as a consociational state. Dutch politics and governance are characterised by a common striving for broad consensus on important issues, within both of the political community and society as a whole.

Constitution

The Dutch Constitution lists the basic civil and social rights of the Dutch citizens and it describes the position and function of the institutions that have executive, legislative and judiciary power.
The constitution applies to the Netherlands, one of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The Netherlands comprises all of the European territory, as well as the Caribbean islands of Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba. The Kingdom as a whole has its own Statute, describing its federate political system.
The Netherlands does not have a constitutional court and judges do not have the authority to review laws on their constitutionality. International treaties and the Statute of the Kingdom, however, overrule Dutch law and the Constitution, and judges are allowed to review laws against these in a particular court case. Furthermore, all legislation that is not a law in the strict sense of the word can be tested on its constitutionality.
Amendments to the Constitution must be approved by both Houses of the States General twice. The first time around, this requires a majority vote. After parliament has been dissolved and a general election has been held, both Houses must approve the proposed amendments again with a two-thirds majority.

Political institutions

The Netherlands is a sovereign state with a democratic government. It is a decentralised unitary state, meaning that power is centralised in the national government, with local governments having to act in accordance. Major political institutions are the monarchy, the cabinet, the States General and the judicial system. Next to the two houses of parliament, there are four other High Councils of State, which are constitutionally independent from the government but have limited political role. The Council of State, which serves as the highest advisory body to the government is the most important. The others are the National Ombudsman, the Court of Audit and the Chancery of the orders of knighthood. Next to the central government the most influential level of government is the municipalities. Between the government and municipalities are positioned the provincial executives at a general regional level and the water boards responsible for water management. Although not mentioned in the Constitution, political parties and the social partners organised in the Social and Economic Council are important political institutions as well.
The Netherlands does not have a traditional separation of powers between the legislative, executive, and judicial branches. Having a parliamentary system, the government is formed based on parliamentary majority. According to the Constitution, the States General and the government share legislative power. All legislation has to pass through the Council of State for advice and the Social and Economic Council advises the government on most socio-economic legislation. Executive power is reserved for the government. The Social and Economic Council also has the special right to make and enforce legislation in specific sectors, mostly in agriculture. The judicial power is divided into two separate systems of courts. For civil and criminal law the independent Supreme Court is the highest court, while for administrative law the Council of State is the highest court, which is ex officio chaired by the monarch.
Dutch politics is characterised by seeking compromises.

Monarchy

The present monarchy was founded in 1813. After the expulsion of the French, the Prince of Orange was proclaimed Sovereign Prince of the Netherlands. The new monarchy was confirmed in 1815 at the Congress of Vienna as part of the re-arrangement of Europe after the fall of Napoleon. The House of Orange-Nassau was given the present-day Netherlands and Belgium to govern as the United Kingdom of the Netherlands. Between 1815 and 1890, the King of the Netherlands was also Grand Duke of Luxembourg.
The current monarch is Willem-Alexander, while the heir apparent is Catharina-Amalia, Princess of Orange.
Constitutionally, the monarch is head of state and has a role in the legislative process, as he has to co-sign every law to make it valid. The monarch is also ex officio chair of the Council of State, which advises the cabinet on every piece of legislation and is the final court for administrative law. Although King Willem-Alexander takes these functions seriously, he refrains from exerting his power in these positions. Until 2012, the monarch also played a central role in the formation of a cabinet after a general election or a cabinet crisis. The monarch used to appoint the informateur, who chairs the formation talks, after consulting the parliamentary leaders of all parties represented in the lower house of the States General. Because this advice was a matter of public record, the monarch could not easily take a direction that was contrary to the advice of a majority in parliament. On the other hand, what was actually talked about behind the closed doors of the palace was not known. Upon the conclusion of formation talks, the monarch appoints the cabinet. Upon the fall of a government, the Prime Minister has to request the monarch to dismiss the cabinet.

Cabinet

The government of the Netherlands constitutionally consists of the monarch and the ministers. The monarch only plays a role in the appointment of ministers, and is not involved in decision-making. The ministers collectively form the Council of Ministers. This executive council meets every Friday in the Trêveszaal at the Binnenhof, and initiates laws and policy. While most of the ministers head government ministries, since 1939 it has been permissible to appoint ministers without portfolio. The Prime Minister of the Netherlands presides over the cabinet and is the most important political figure of the Dutch government.
The Dutch cabinet is characterised by a high degree of collegiality and collective decision-making. The prime minister draws up the agenda and chairs Council of Minister meetings, but lacks the prerogative to appoint or remove ministers without the formal approval of the whole cabinet. Moreover, the prime minister's office is limited in size. Despite these limitations, the prime minister's position has grown in importance since the 1960s as a result of increased media attention, increasing demand for policy coordination and European integration.
The national government consists of ministries, the implementing organizations that fall under the responsibility of ministries, inspectorates, and High Councils of State, and is involved in the preparation and implementation of the plans of the government and parliament.
Some of the most highly regarded Prime Ministers of the Netherlands include:

States General

The Dutch Parliament, officially known as the States General of the Netherlands, consists of a House of Representatives and a Senate. Both chambers are housed in the Binnenhof in The Hague and discuss proposed legislation and review the actions of the cabinet. Only the House of Representatives has the right to propose or amend legislation while the Senate discusses its value regarding the Dutch law since the Netherlands has no constitutional court. Currently there are 150 members of the House of Representatives and 75 Senators.
Members of the House are elected directly every four years using party-list proportional representation. Representatives are chosen on personal title, so when a member no longer agrees with his or her party, the member can decide to stay in the chamber, either as an independent representative, or as a member of another parliamentary party. If a member decides to resign, the empty seat falls to the original party collecting the votes, and is offered to the highest placed candidate on the party's electoral list who was not elected. Coalition governments may fall before their term expires, which usually results in early dissolution of the House and new elections.
Members of the Senate are elected indirectly by provincial councilors, again every four years, just after the elections of the provincial councils, via a system of proportional representation. Nowadays, the Senate is mainly considered to be a body of elder statesmen reconsidering legislation at ease, away from the pressure of daily political and media hypes. The position of senator is a part-time job as the institution meets once a week.

Political parties

The system of proportional representation, combined with the historical social division between Catholics, Protestants, socialists and liberals, has resulted in a multiparty system. The parties currently represented in the Dutch House of Representatives are: