The Netherlands
What is meant by the Netherlands?....................................................................................3
Dutch Independence and the French Period........................................................................3
The Kingdom of the United Netherlands.............................................................................5
The Dutch Constitution.......................................................................................................5
Constitutional monarchy....................................................................................................7
Judicial review....................................................................................................................7
Constitutional Amendment.................................................................................................9
The Charter for the Kingdom..............................................................................................9
Federalism, Unitarism and Decentralization.....................................................................11
Decentralization in the Netherlands.................................................................................11
The Overaching Kingdom..................................................................................................13
Parliaments and Law- making..........................................................................................15
The States-General...........................................................................................................15
The Second Chamber........................................................................................................15
The First Chamber.............................................................................................................18
The legislative Process......................................................................................................20
Statutes for the Netherlands in Europe.............................................................................20
The King/ Queen...............................................................................................................22
Statutes for the Overall Kingdom......................................................................................22
Political Parties.................................................................................................................24
Governments, their Parliaments and their Heads of State.................................................24
The King/ Queen...............................................................................................................24
The Prime Minister and his/her Cabinet............................................................................26
Ministerial accountability.................................................................................................28
Executive, oversight and immunity...................................................................................30
Motions of No Confidence.................................................................................................30
6.5 Parliamentary Scrutiny...............................................................................................33
The government of the Kingdom.......................................................................................33
Judicial review and court systems.....................................................................................33
The Court System..............................................................................................................33
Constitutional Review.......................................................................................................35
International Treaties and the ECHR.................................................................................37
,The European Union.........................................................................................................37
, What is meant by the Netherlands?
What is meant
o Constitution dates back to 1814/1815, when after the defeat of
by the
Netherlands? France in the Napoleonic Wars an independent state in the
lowlands was re-established
o Netherlands: quasi-federal construct (Netherlands- country in
Europe+ three other constituent countries- Aruba, Curaçao and
Saint Martin in the Caribbean
o The Kingdom as an overarching federal entity was created by
the Charter for the Kingdom of the Netherlands (Statuut)
Statuut
o Redefined the Kingdom as having several component parts,
since 2010 four- the Netherlands no longer being the colonial
motherland but being notionally co-equal to its former
dependencies
o BES islands: Bonaire, Saint Eustatius and Saba were converted
into decentralized public entities of the Netherlands in proper
Grondwet
o today is ‘merely’ the constitution of the Netherlands proper:
the Kingdom’s European part including the three BES islands
United Provinces created by the Union of Utrecht in 1579
Dutch
o Seven northerly provinces of the lowlands (Friesland,
Independence
and the French Groningen, Holland, Utrecht, Overijssel, Zeeland and the
Period northern parts of Guelders) formed a confederation in their
rebellion against Spain and Habsburg monarchy
o The southern provinces, which remained under Spanish rule,
became known as the Southern Netherlands or the Spanish
Netherlands. That area roughly corresponds with present-day
Belgium
Peace of Westphalia 1648
o the United Provinces declared themselves independent from
Habsburg
o They were recognized as such in the 1648 Peace of Westphalia,
which ended not only the larger Thirty Years’ War in Europe but
also the Eighty Years’ War between the Dutch Provinces and
Spain
The United Provinces functioned on confederal principles
o Each province kept its own staten or ‘states’, more or less
representative assemblies, along with a states-appointed
stadholder
o Union competences were exercised by the States-General
composed of delegates from the provincial states, who acted
on mandates from their home provinces rather than in
personal capacity
Relative weakness of the central institutions
o The United Provinces became a major European naval and
merchant power and they obtained numerous colonial
, possessions
o The confederation remained intact until the 1795 invasion by
French revolutionary armies
After France’s defeat,
a monarchy was
In 1806, Napoleon
restored as William I,
transformed the
who descended from
France established a Batavian Republic
the last stadholders
new French- into the Kingdom of
of Holland, accepted
modelled unitary Holland, a French
sovereignty in 1813
entity called the vassal state under
and a new
Batavian Republic the rule of
monarchical
Napoleon’s brother
Constitution,
Louis
the Grondwet, was
adopted in 1814
What is meant by the Netherlands?....................................................................................3
Dutch Independence and the French Period........................................................................3
The Kingdom of the United Netherlands.............................................................................5
The Dutch Constitution.......................................................................................................5
Constitutional monarchy....................................................................................................7
Judicial review....................................................................................................................7
Constitutional Amendment.................................................................................................9
The Charter for the Kingdom..............................................................................................9
Federalism, Unitarism and Decentralization.....................................................................11
Decentralization in the Netherlands.................................................................................11
The Overaching Kingdom..................................................................................................13
Parliaments and Law- making..........................................................................................15
The States-General...........................................................................................................15
The Second Chamber........................................................................................................15
The First Chamber.............................................................................................................18
The legislative Process......................................................................................................20
Statutes for the Netherlands in Europe.............................................................................20
The King/ Queen...............................................................................................................22
Statutes for the Overall Kingdom......................................................................................22
Political Parties.................................................................................................................24
Governments, their Parliaments and their Heads of State.................................................24
The King/ Queen...............................................................................................................24
The Prime Minister and his/her Cabinet............................................................................26
Ministerial accountability.................................................................................................28
Executive, oversight and immunity...................................................................................30
Motions of No Confidence.................................................................................................30
6.5 Parliamentary Scrutiny...............................................................................................33
The government of the Kingdom.......................................................................................33
Judicial review and court systems.....................................................................................33
The Court System..............................................................................................................33
Constitutional Review.......................................................................................................35
International Treaties and the ECHR.................................................................................37
,The European Union.........................................................................................................37
, What is meant by the Netherlands?
What is meant
o Constitution dates back to 1814/1815, when after the defeat of
by the
Netherlands? France in the Napoleonic Wars an independent state in the
lowlands was re-established
o Netherlands: quasi-federal construct (Netherlands- country in
Europe+ three other constituent countries- Aruba, Curaçao and
Saint Martin in the Caribbean
o The Kingdom as an overarching federal entity was created by
the Charter for the Kingdom of the Netherlands (Statuut)
Statuut
o Redefined the Kingdom as having several component parts,
since 2010 four- the Netherlands no longer being the colonial
motherland but being notionally co-equal to its former
dependencies
o BES islands: Bonaire, Saint Eustatius and Saba were converted
into decentralized public entities of the Netherlands in proper
Grondwet
o today is ‘merely’ the constitution of the Netherlands proper:
the Kingdom’s European part including the three BES islands
United Provinces created by the Union of Utrecht in 1579
Dutch
o Seven northerly provinces of the lowlands (Friesland,
Independence
and the French Groningen, Holland, Utrecht, Overijssel, Zeeland and the
Period northern parts of Guelders) formed a confederation in their
rebellion against Spain and Habsburg monarchy
o The southern provinces, which remained under Spanish rule,
became known as the Southern Netherlands or the Spanish
Netherlands. That area roughly corresponds with present-day
Belgium
Peace of Westphalia 1648
o the United Provinces declared themselves independent from
Habsburg
o They were recognized as such in the 1648 Peace of Westphalia,
which ended not only the larger Thirty Years’ War in Europe but
also the Eighty Years’ War between the Dutch Provinces and
Spain
The United Provinces functioned on confederal principles
o Each province kept its own staten or ‘states’, more or less
representative assemblies, along with a states-appointed
stadholder
o Union competences were exercised by the States-General
composed of delegates from the provincial states, who acted
on mandates from their home provinces rather than in
personal capacity
Relative weakness of the central institutions
o The United Provinces became a major European naval and
merchant power and they obtained numerous colonial
, possessions
o The confederation remained intact until the 1795 invasion by
French revolutionary armies
After France’s defeat,
a monarchy was
In 1806, Napoleon
restored as William I,
transformed the
who descended from
France established a Batavian Republic
the last stadholders
new French- into the Kingdom of
of Holland, accepted
modelled unitary Holland, a French
sovereignty in 1813
entity called the vassal state under
and a new
Batavian Republic the rule of
monarchical
Napoleon’s brother
Constitution,
Louis
the Grondwet, was
adopted in 1814
