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Commemoration ceremony at the Roll of Honour for the Fallen 1940-1945
4 May 2020On May 4 2020, the commemoration ceremony at the Roll of Honour for the Fallen took place in the House of Representatives. The President of the House, Khadija Arib, gave a speech and laid a wreath at the national monument, together with President of the Senate Jan Anthonie Bruijn, on behalf of the States General. Prime Minister Mark Rutte and Paul Blokhuis, State Secretary for Health, Welfare and Sport, laid a wreath on behalf of the Council of Ministers.
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House meets in Former Plenary Hall
21 April 2020The Former Plenary Hall has been temporarily reinstated as a meeting room. At this spot, which was the home of the plenary meetings of the House of Representatives until 1992, a round table discussion about the Corona app took place on Wednesday 22 April.
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House of Representatives to increase number of debates
10 April 2020The Dutch House of Representatives will increase the number of physical debates in the coming weeks. The House will continue to scrutinise the work of Government with due regard for the health and safety of everyone working in the House. President of the House Khadija Arib writes this in a letter to Members of Parliament, on behalf of the Presidium. During the coming recess, the House will continue to hold debates on the coronavirus.
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House of Representatives: steps to preserve the operation of the parliamentary process
15 March 2020On Sunday March 15, the President of the House of Representatives, ms Khadija Arib, announced new steps in parliament to prevent the coronavirus from spreading. The parliamentary process will continue, but the number of physical debates will be reduced. Only debates that are of the utmost importance will continue to be held in the plenary hall; this goes for all debates concerning the coronavirus. The only plenary session during week 12 will be on Wednesday 18 March, when there will be a debate on the current government strategy to fight the coronavirus.
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Hearing schedule parliamentary committee of inquiry into the undesirable influence of unfree countries
6 February 2020On Monday February 10 2020, the parliamentary committee of inquiry into the undesirable influence of unfree countries will start its hearings.
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Wartime Netherlands captured on camera
30 January 2020At the Hotel de Wereld in Wageningen on January 30 2020, Khadija Arib, President of the House of Representatives, joined other members of the judging panel to view numerous photographs of the Netherlands during wartime. The photographs are part of the exhibition entitled World War II in a hundred photographs (De Tweede Wereldoorlog in honderd foto's) that will be on display in the House of Representatives from 30 March onwards. The photographs, 25 for each Dutch province, originate from professional photographers and private collections.
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'The public know how to have their say in The Hague’
20 December 2019In 2019, the Dutch House of Representatives featured at the very heart of public debate. According to President of the House of Representatives, ms. Khadija Arib, in her traditional pre-Christmas address, this was made even clearer by the numerous civil protests that were held. She cited the debate about the childcare allowance as one of those that had the greatest impact in the last year.
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House of Representatives appoints integrity adviser for MPs
28 November 2019The Presidium of the House of Representatives has appointed Jacqueline Biesheuvel-Vermeijden as the independent integrity adviser for MPs. They can approach her for advice on the interpretation and application of the rules governing integrity.
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Transparency rapporteurs Omtzigt and Leijten visit Venice Commission
21 October 2019On Thursday 10 October 2019, the Transparency Rapporteurs from the Dutch House of Representatives, Pieter Omtzigt (CDA) and Renske Leijten (SP), paid a working visit to the European Commission for Democracy through Law (also known as the Venice Commission) of the Council of Europe.
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Emergency provisions in parliamentary constitutional law under scrutiny
10 October 2019At the request of the Presidium, a working group consisting of MPs Mr Joost Sneller (D66, chair), Mr Jeroen van Wijngaarden (VVD) and Ms Anne Kuik (CDA) has scrutinized the continuation of the people's representation in case of an extreme emergency. The working group has examined which legal and statutory provisions are in place in case of an emergency, to make sure that the House can carry on with its business, thus guaranteeing the democratic legitimation of the national government. The working group recently published its findings.