Council of State (Netherlands)
Council of State | |
---|---|
Raad van State | |
Vice President | |
Currently | Thom de Graaf |
Since | 1 November 2018 |
The Council of State (Dutch: ⓘ) is a constitutionally established advisory body in the Netherlands to the government and States General that officially consists of members of the royal family and Crown-appointed members generally having political, commercial, diplomatic or military experience. It was founded in 1531, making it one of the world's oldest still-functioning state organisations.[1]
The Council of State must be consulted by the cabinet on proposed legislation before a
History
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Habsburg Netherlands
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor founded a Council of State on 1 October 1531 as one of three Collateral Councils (the other two were the Privy Council or Secret Council and the Council of Finances) to advise his sister Mary of Hungary, his regent in the Habsburg Netherlands, and her successors, on les grandz et principaulx affaires et ceux qui concernent l'état conduycte et gouvernement des pais, securite et deffense desdits pays de pardeca,[2] in other words the main questions of government, foreign affairs and defense. Members of the council were the great nobles of the realm and a few of the great prelates.[3]
After the accession of
Under Anjou and Leicester
When the
Under the Dutch Republic
By 1588 the Council had therefore reached the structure and functions it would possess during the entire existence of the Dutch Republic. The Council was henceforth made up of members appointed by the States-General on the nomination of the Provincial States (usually about 12), with two members (between 1598 and 1625 one[10]) appointed by the English government.[11] The stadtholders of the provinces were ex officio members, at least outside the First Stadtholderless Period and Second Stadtholderless Period. The executive powers of the Council were limited to military policy (both on land and sea); administering the Dutch States Army's financial aspects (naval affairs were administered by the five Admiralties, founded by Leicester); and formulating and executing tax policy for the Generality Lands.
The Council usually played a self-effacing role, as laid down in its Instruction of 1651, at the beginning of the first Stadtholderless Period. However, the secretary of the Council, Simon van Slingelandt played a leading role in an attempt at constitutional reform (which would have greatly increased the executive powers of the Council, as intended in the time of Leicester) in 1717. This attempt came to nothing, however.[12]
After the overthrow of the regime of stadtholder William V, Prince of Orange and the founding of the Batavian Republic in 1795, the Council was dissolved, together with the States-General.
Under the Kingdom of the Netherlands
Though an advisory council with the nostalgic name Council of State was again instituted in the waning days of the Batavian Republic in 1805, and also the successor
Under the new constitution of 1848 the Council of State was reformed in the sense that its structure and functions were delegated to an Organic Law. The first such law (the Council of State Act) was enacted in 1861. The most important innovation of this law was that besides the advisory task of the Council in matters of law giving the Council would also advise in cases in which conflicts between administrative organs (like provinces and municipalities) were put before the Crown (king and ministers) for resolution. For this type of advice a new subdivision of the Council was formed that came to act like an administrative court (though the formal decision rested with the Crown). This function of high administrative court was enlarged in the succeeding century. Finally, the 1861 law made the Council the institution that would exercise royal authority in the absence of the king or a regent.[15] This case did happen for short periods in 1889 and 1890, in those periods the Council served as regent for King William III under the Vice-President Gerlach Cornelis Joannes van Reenen.
In 1887 the revised constitution opened the way for making the Council a formal administrative court. This did not actually happen before 1963 when the Wet Beroep Administratieve Beschikkingen (BAB, Administrative Decisions Review Act) was enacted, replaced in 1976 by the Wet Administratief Beroep Overheidsbeschikkingen (AROB, Administrative Decisions Appeals Act). This setup was changed in 1988, because the European Court of Human Rights had deemed in Benthem v Netherlands that the fact that the Council of State was not an independent institution ran contrary to the provisions of the European Convention on Human Rights. To permanently remedy this defect the "judicial" part of the Council was in 1994 made formally independent from the part that advised on legislative matters. This split in two separate parts was confirmed in the most recent revision (2010) of the Council of State Act.[16]
Membership
Advisory Division | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
ex officio Members
|
Operation of law reason | Appointed | |||
King Willem-Alexander (born 1967) |
Heir apparent (1985–2013) – King (since 2013) |
27 April 1985 (39 years, 1 day) Member – 30 April 2013 (10 years, 364 days) President | |||
Queen Máxima (born 1971) |
Spouse of the heir apparent (2002–2013) – Queen consort (since 2013) |
2 February 2002 (22 years, 86 days) Member | |||
Catharina-Amalia, Princess of Orange (born 2003) |
Heir apparent (since 2013) |
8 December 2021 (2 years, 142 days) Member | |||
Vice-President | Appointed | Party | Background | ||
Thom de Graaf (born 1957) |
1 November 2018 (5 years, 179 days) |
Democrats 66 | Politician (MP · Minister · Mayor) Jurist (Researcher · Legal educator) | ||
Crown Members | Appointed | Party | Background | ||
Sylvia Wortmann (born 1956) |
1 March 2004 (20 years, 58 days) |
Independent | Jurist (Researcher · Law professor) | ||
Dr. Hanna Sevenster (born 1963) |
1 June 2007 (16 years, 332 days) |
Independent | Jurist (Lawyer · Law professor) Civil servant | ||
Ben Vermeulen (born 1957) |
1 February 2008 (16 years, 87 days) |
Independent | Jurist (Law professor) | ||
Dr. Jaap Polak (born 1955) |
1 May 2010 (13 years, 363 days) |
Independent | Jurist (Lawyer · Prosecutor · Law professor) | ||
Advisory Members | Appointed | Party | Background | ||
Dr. Sjaak Jansen (born 1954) |
1 September 2010 (13 years, 240 days) |
Independent | Jurist (Law professor) Civil servant | ||
Luc Verhey (born 1960) |
1 March 2011 (13 years, 58 days) |
Independent | Jurist (Law professor) Civil servant | ||
Dr. Theo van der Nat (born 1951) |
1 May 2011 (12 years, 363 days) |
People's Party for Freedom and Democracy |
Politician (Alderman) Economist (Researcher · Economics professor) Banker Civil servant | ||
Dr. Guus Heerma van Voss (born 1957) |
1 April 2012 (12 years, 27 days) |
Independent | Jurist (Researcher · Law professor) | ||
Jan Franssen (born 1951) |
1 January 2014 (10 years, 118 days) |
People's Party for Freedom and Democracy |
Politician (MP · Mayor · King's Commissioner) | ||
Ronald van den Tweel (born 1964) |
24 June 2015 (8 years, 309 days) |
Independent | Jurist (Lawyer) | ||
Peter van den Berg (born 1952) |
24 June 2015 (8 years, 309 days) |
Independent | Economist Civil servant | ||
Dr. Niels Koeman (born 1949) |
1 September 2017 (6 years, 240 days) |
Independent | Jurist (Lawyer · Law professor) | ||
Dr. Nico Schrijver (born 1954) |
1 September 2017 (6 years, 240 days) |
Labour Party | Politician (MP) Jurist (Researcher · Law professor) Civil servant | ||
Richard van Zwol (born 1965) |
1 September 2017 (6 years, 240 days) |
Christian Democratic Appeal | Economist Civil servant | ||
Frank de Grave (born 1955) |
3 September 2018 (5 years, 238 days) |
People's Party for Freedom and Democracy |
Politician (Minister · MP) Corporate director Banker | ||
Extraordinary Members | Appointed | Party | Background | ||
Dick Sluimers (born 1953) |
20 January 2016 (8 years, 99 days) |
People's Party for Freedom and Democracy |
Economist Corporate director Civil servant | ||
Gerard Roes (born 1951) |
20 January 2016 (8 years, 99 days) |
Independent | Civil servant | ||
Ad Melkert (born 1956) |
20 January 2016 (8 years, 99 days) |
Labour Party | Politician (Minister · MP) Diplomat Civil servant | ||
Dr. Age Bakker (born 1950) |
31 August 2016 (7 years, 241 days) |
Christian Democratic Appeal | Economist (Economics professor) Banker Civil servant | ||
Marijke Vos (born 1957) |
31 August 2016 (7 years, 241 days) |
GreenLeft | Politician (MP) |
Vice-Presidents
Name | Period |
---|---|
Gijsbert Karel van Hogendorp | 1814–1816 |
Johan Hendrik Mollerus | 1817–1829 |
William, Prince of Orange | 1829–1840 |
Hendrik Jacob van Doorn van Westcapelle | 1841–1848 |
Willem Gerard van de Poll | 1848–1858 |
Æneas Mackay | 1862–1876 |
Gerlach Cornelis Joannes van Reenen | 1876–1893 |
Johan Æmilius Abraham van Panhuys | 1893–1897 |
Johan Willem Meinard Schorer | 1897–1903 |
Peter Joannes van Swinderen | 1903–1912 |
Joan Röell | 1912–1914 |
Wilhelmus Frederik van Leeuwen | 1914–1928 |
Fredrik Alexander Carel van Lynden van Sandenburg | 1928–1932 |
Frans Beelaerts van Blokland | 1933–1956 |
Bram Rutgers | 1956–1959 |
Louis Beel | 1959–1972 |
Marinus Ruppert | 1973–1980 |
Willem Scholten | 1980–1997 |
Herman Tjeenk Willink | 1997–2012 |
Piet Hein Donner | 2012–2018 |
Thom de Graaf | 2018–present |
References
- ^ "The Council of State". Archived from the original on 2013-01-15. Retrieved 2013-02-02.
- ^ Geschiedenis, 1531
- ^ J.I. Israel, pp. 35-37
- ^ J.I. Israel, pp. 139-141
- ^ J.I. Israel, p. 185
- ^ J.I. Israel, pp. 212-214
- ^ J.I. Israel,p. 217
- ^ J.I. Israel, p. 220
- ^ J.I. Israel, pp.223-240
- ^ The Treaty of Nonsuch was renewed and amended by the Treaty of Westminster of 1598; one of the changes was that the number of English councilors was reduced to one; Cf. F.G. Davenport and C.O Paulin, European Treaties Bearing on the History of the United States and Its Dependencies (Carnegie Institution of Washington, 1917), p. 240
- List of diplomats of the United Kingdom to the Netherlands; the last English member was Dudley Carleton, 1st Viscount Dorchesterwho left in 1625.
- ^ J.I. Israel, pp. 987-988
- ^ Geschiedenis, Franse tijd
- ^ Geschiedenis, 1814
- ^ Geschiedenis, 1848
- ^ Geschiedenis, 1962-2010
Sources
- ISBN 0-19-820734-4paperback
- (in Dutch) Geschiedenis Raad van State