House of Representatives news

At 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.

At the proposal of Ms Agnes Mulder (CDA) and Mr Matthijs Sienot (D66), the Inter-parliamentary Conference on Climate Change in Helsinki was concluded with an appeal for the European Commission and the European Council to set the long-term goal that the EU should be climate-neutral by 2050. The European Commission and the European Council were also called upon to increase the current EU's 2030 reduction targets.

Dozens of programmers and data analysts 'took over' the Central Passageway of the House of Representatives on Friday, 4 October 2019. During this third edition of the Accountability Hack, they came up with open data solutions to assist members of the House in addressing issues pertaining to education funding and medicine prices.

The year in which the Netherlands celebrated 100 years of universal suffrage for men and women was concluded in a festive way in the House of Representatives. To mark the occasion, an investigation report into the lives of Suze Groeneweg and Carry Pothuis-Smit, the first two women ever to become members of parliament in the Netherlands, was presented to the President of the House, Ms Khadija Arib, and the President of the Senate, Mr Jan Anthonie Bruijn.

The Battle of Arnhem was commemorated on Friday evening, 20 September 2019, at the Airborne Monument in Arnhem. The President of the House of Representatives, Ms Khadija Arib, laid a wreath on behalf of the States General.

On Thursday, 19 September 2019, the House of Representatives concluded its annual General Political Debate on the Budget Memorandum. Two days earlier, on Prince's Day, the President of the House Ms Khadija Arib had received the documents, traditionally presented to her by the minister of Finance in the Prince's Day briefcase. On 19 September 2019, Prime Minister Rutte replied to the contributions made by the leaders of the parliamentary groups the day before.

The evacuation of SS concentration camp Vught, now 75 years ago, was commemorated on Sunday, 8 September 2019, with a silent march, speeches and the laying of wreaths. The President of the House, Ms Khadija Arib, shared a few reflections with the participants in the commemoration in Vught.

On Tuesday, 20 May 2019, 100 students from colleges of further education all over the Netherlands came to the House of Representatives today for the annual V-100. This is a citizens’ panel which sits once a year to scrutinise the accountability documents issued by the various ministries in The Hague and to formulate critical questions about government policy. This is the third time that the House has organised a V-100 session.

On Friday 17 May 2019, the House of Representatives celebrated the centenary of universal suffrage in the Netherlands in the presence of His Majesty King Willem-Alexander and Her Majesty Queen Máxima. In addition to members of both houses of Parliament, the festive gathering at the Ridderzaal, the “Hall of Knights” at the parliamentary complex in The Hague, was also attended by people from all over the country with a special involvement with elections and electoral law.

With the official handover of the government’s financial reports to the President of the House of Representatives, Dutch Finance Minister Wopke Hoekstra officially opened Accountability Day on Wednesday 15 May 2019. This annual event, also called the “flip side” of Budget Day, marks the beginning of the months-long process during which the House checks that the government is actually implementing its plans.

From 28 April to 3 May, a delegation from the Standing Committee for Foreign Affairs will visit the United States capital, Washington D.C. The MPs will be brought up to speed on political and social developments in the US as well as on the US government’s international stance.

The border between Ireland and Northern Ireland appears to be the most significant stumbling block in the negotiations on the United Kingdom's withdrawal from the European Union. In order to gain an impression of the consequences of a no-deal Brexit for Ireland and the Irish/Northern Irish border, Dutch members of parliament visited Dublin and the area around the Irish/Northern Irish border.

The upcoming relocation of the House of Representatives to its new interim accommodation at Bezuidenhoutseweg in The Hague dominates the 2020 budget of the House, along with plans to strengthen the parliamentary process

On Tuesday, 19 March 2019, at the beginning of its sitting, the House of Representatives commemorated the victims of the Utrecht attack on Monday, 18 March, and the attack in Christchurch, New Zealand, on Friday 15 March. On behalf of the House, the President, Ms Khadija Arib, expressed her sympathy with the victims and their families.

With less than 31 days to go before the United Kingdom leaves the EU, there is also some urgency for the Netherlands to prepare properly for the possible scenarios. In their third Brexit report on behalf of the European Affairs Committee, Anne Mulder, Pieter Omtzigt and Lodewijk Asscher have warned of the consequences of a no-deal scenario, which is becoming increasingly likely. The rapporteurs are calling for additional preparations and measures.