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Page contents: The Netherlands constitutional state
Introductie
Constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy
The Netherlands has been a constitutional monarchy since 1848. The Constitution (Grondwet) determines that the government i.e. the Ministers are responsible for the government policy, rather than the Monarch. The Queen enjoys a position of immunity.
The Netherlands is a parliamentary democracy. The State is ruled by the government under the supervision of parliament. The government consists of the Ministers under the leadership of the Prime Minister. Parliament consists of an Upper and a Lower House.
The Lower and Upper House
The 150 members of the Lower House are elected directly by the citizens of the Netherlands. Elections are in principle held every four years. The main task of the Lower House is to supervise the governments actions. The Lower House has a number of powers to do this.
One of the most important is the right of amendment, i.e. the right to change bills proposed by the Cabinet. The Minister responsible for the proposed bill can adopt such an amendment, can submit it to a vote in the Lower House or can reject it. In this case the Lower House may table a motion of no confidence against the Minister or the Cabinet. This can ultimately lead to the resignation of the Minister or the Cabinet.
The Lower House may also exercise the right of initiative, i.e. the right to propose bills, the right of interpellation i.e. the right to demand clarification from a Minister, the right of inquiry and the 6.right of budget. These rights form the basis of parliamentary democracy in the Netherlands.
The 75 members of the Upper House are elected indirectly.
The Netherlands has three administrative layers: the State, the provinces and the municipalities. Elections are held every four years for the Provincial Councils (the second administrative layer) and the municipalities. Delegates from the Provincial Councils make up the membership of the Upper House.
The Upper House is a co-legislator and monitors government policy. All bills which have been passed in the Lower House must also be approved by the Upper House. The Upper House can reject a bill. It cannot propose or amend bills. Further, the members of the Upper House have the same rights as the members of the Lower House.
Ministries
The Netherlands has 13 Ministries:
- Ministry of General Affairs
- Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Development Co-operation
- Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations
- Ministry of Justice
- Ministry of Education, Culture and Science
- Ministry of Finance
- Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport
- Ministry of Defence
- Ministry of Economic Affairs
- Ministry of Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment
- Ministry of Social Affairs and Employment
- Ministry of Transport, Public Works and Water Management
- Ministry of Agriculture, Nature Management and Fisheries
Each Ministry is headed by a Minister, who bears political responsibility for the policy pursued by that Ministry. He or she is supported in this task by one or occasionally two State Secretaries.
The civil servants in each Ministry assist the Minister and State Secretary or Secretaries in their work. They maintain an apolitical stance (loyalty principle). After elections, the civil servants continue to work at the same Ministry for the newly appointed Ministers and State Secretaries.
