Democracy in the Netherlands
The Netherlands is a parliamentary democracy. Once every four years the Dutch citizens entitled to vote elect the people who will represent them in Parliament, so the elections are the basis of democracy.
Parliament’s duties include scrutinising the work of the Government and making new laws in cooperation with the Government. The Dutch Parliament is called “the States General”. It is bicameral, i.e. consists of two chambers: the Senate (Eerste Kamer der Staten-Generaal in Dutch) and the House of Representatives (Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal).
People’s representation
The members of the Senate and the House of Representatives represent the people of the Netherlands. But how do these representatives of the people know what their voters want?
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The House of Representatives
The main duties of the House of Representatives are co-legislation and checking that the Government carries out its work properly.
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Senate
The Senate is one of the two chambers of the Dutch Parliament. It is not elected directly by the Dutch people.
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Duties and rights of Parliament
The House of Representatives has two main duties: making laws and scrutinising the work of the Government.
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The Cabinet
The Cabinet comprises the Prime Minister, the other Ministers and the State Secretaries. The Cabinet formulates and is accountable for the Government’s policies
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Coalition versus Opposition
The political parties that make up the Cabinet are called coalition parties. Parties that are not included in the Cabinet are called opposition parties.
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