Netherlands - Politics
Sessions of the Second Chamber are usually more akin to a library board meeting, than a serious political discourse: very solid, never emotional. It all conforms to the traditional Dutch saying: 'Just be normal, that's crazy enough'. As a result, the Parliament does not hold debates. Rather, it deliberates. Conflict is counter-productive. No single party has ever had anything approaching an overall majority in parliament, so coalition government is inevitable. This makes parties extremely cautious - today's enemy may be tomorrow's ally - especially at a time when the death of ideology has made it possible for almost all the parties to work together.
The Netherlands has a long tradition of technocratic pol- icymaking: political visions or grand ideals are not part of daily political discourse. Neo-corporatist muddling through, a large role for experts and the depoliticisation of thorny political questions have been the regular practice of post-war politics.
The Dutch political landscape is been characterised by populist movements – on both the left and the right. They appeal to a segment of society that is alienated from the existing political institutions – specifically, the so-called »established« parties and their poli- ticians – angry about the malfunctioning of the public sector and, on the right, dissatisfied with the badly managed immigration and integration processes. Rather than having roots in extreme conservative or fascist circles or traditions, right-wing populism in the Netherlands is characterised by a post-modern mix of conservative values, disgust with the left, xenophobia and liberal values, such as the protection of gay marriage, a strong emphasis on freedom of speech and women’s rights. Wilders is the most recent phenomenon of the Dutch populist wave.
By the late 20th Century the Christian Democrats had a corporate approach to society while championing family values. Both the Liberal and the List Pim Fortuyn parties are strong advocates of free enterprise and restricted government intervention, as well as law and order. The Labor party has a governmental approach to society and relies on traditional Social Democratic ideas.
The smaller political parties include two Protestant parties, the Christian Union and Calvinist Political Party (SGP), with orthodox views on ethical questions but left-leaning views on most other issues, as well as two leftist parties - Green Left and the Socialist Party (SP) - representing views ranging from liberal (as understood in the United States) to neo-Marxist. No party could be qualified as either racist or xenophobe.
From the end of World War II until December 1958, the Netherlands was governed by a series of coalitions built on a Labor-Catholic base. From 1958 to 1994, governments were formed primarily from a center- right coalition of the Christian Democrats and the Liberals, with the social democratic-oriented Labor Party generally in opposition.
The government formed in August 1994, was a three-way "Purple Coalition" of the Labor (PvdA), Liberal (VVD), and Democrats '66 (D'66) parties headed by Prime Minister Kok of the PvdA. The coalition parties hold 92 of the 150 seats in the Second Chamber. The Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) is in opposition with 34 seats. Eight minor parties held the remaining 24 seats.
The elections in May 2002 saw the CDA revitalised as the largest party after eight years in opposition, while the Labour Party performed badly. The party of assassinated populist politician Pim Fortuyn (LPF) also did well in its first election, winning the second largest number of seats. A CDA/Liberal/LPF coalition led by Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende took office in July 2002, but collapsed just three months later.
In subsequent elections in January 2003, the CDA again won the most number of seats, and Labour won back most of the seats it had lost a year earlier to the LPF. Following elections in January 2003, nine political parties in the Second Chamber represented the political spectrum from far left to far right. Among the larger parties are the centrist Christian Democrats (CDA) with 44 seats, the Labor (PvdA) party with 42 seats, the Liberal (read conservative) VVD party with 28 seats, and far-left Socialist Party (SP) with 9 seats and the center-right List Pim Fortuyn (LPF) with 8 seats. After several months of negotiations the CDA and two liberal parties (VVD and D66) reached a coalition agreement. In May 2003 Balkenende's second center-right Government was sworn in, while Labour remained in opposition.
In June 2006 the Government tendered its resignation after the smallest of the three coalition parties, D66, (6/150 seats) withdrew parliamentary support in protest against the Government's handling of the affair concerning the citizenship of Somali born Dutch MP Ayaan Hirsi Ali. The Queen subsequently took advice from party leaders and asked former Prime Minister Lubbers to broker a new minority coalition of Christian Democrats (CDA) and Liberals (VVD) in advance of fresh elections in the November 2006.
General elections were held in November 2006. On February 22, 2007, a new center-left coalition government was sworn in, composed of the center-right Christian Democrats (CDA), Social Democrats (PvdA), and left-of-center orthodox Protestant Christian Union (CU) under CDA Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende. Given the consensus-based nature of Dutch politics, a change of government does not usually result in any drastic change in foreign or domestic policy.
General elections (of the Second Chamber) were held in June 2010. On October 14, 2010, a new minority government of the Liberal Party (VVD) and Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) was sworn in, headed by Prime Minister Mark Rutte (VVD). This government relies on parliamentary support from the Freedom Party (PVV). Given the consensus-based nature of Dutch politics, a change of government does not usually result in drastic changes in foreign or domestic policy.
On 23 April 2012 Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte submitted his government's resignation following a collapse in talks on reducing the country's budget. On 12 September 2012 Dutch voters went to the polls choosing a new government - Europe had been a dominant theme alongside the economy and how to tackle the ongoing economic crisis. Austerity measures and the Eurozone crisis dominated the campaign. While the VVD advocated deeper cuts into the welfare state than the Labour Party, both remained committed to a strong Europe. The center-right VVD party of Prime Minister Mark Rutte emerged as winner of the closely contested elections in the Netherlands, winning 41 seats. The center-left Labour Party of Diedrik Samsom was in second place, with 39 seats.
The Netherlands voted on 15 March 2017, and the resulting glass was half empty and half full. Four Dutch political parties finally made a deal to form a coalition government on 09 October 2017, some 209 days after the election. The negotiations surpassed the record-setting 208 days required to a form a coalition government in 1977. Prime Minister Mark Rutte's business-friendly liberal VVD party, the progressive D66 party and the Christian CDA and Christian Union parties will form a coalition if the agreement is given the all-clear by the various parties. The new coalition will control just 76 seats in the 150-seat lower house, giving it a slim majority. Rutte had tried to form a coalition with the GreenLeft party, but was hamstrung by differences over immigration. He refused to form a coalition with the anti-Islam far-right Freedom Party of Geert Wilders, which came second.
|
NEWSLETTER
|
| Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list |
|
|
|
