2018 Dutch Intelligence and Security Services Act referendum

Last updated

2018 Dutch Intelligence and Security Services Act referendum
Flag of the Netherlands.svg
21 March 2018

Are you for or against the Intelligence and Security Services Act 2017?
Wiv referendum Winterswijk 2018.jpg
Results
Choice
Votes %
For3,122,62846.53%
Against3,317,49649.44%
Blank votes270,2884.03%
Valid votes6,710,41299.65%
Invalid votes23,8130.35%
Total votes6,734,225100.00%
Eligible to vote/turnout13,064,93251.54%

Niederlande Referendum 2018.svg
Results by municipality

  For
  Against

An advisory referendum on the Intelligence and Security Services Act 2017 (Dutch : Wet op de inlichtingen- en veiligheidsdiensten 2017, abbreviated 'Wiv') was held in the Netherlands on 21 March 2018, alongside the municipal elections. It was the second referendum to be held under the Dutch Advisory Referendum Act after the 2016 Ukraine–European Union Association Agreement referendum.

Contents

A plurality of voters (49.44%) voted against the law, resulting in its rejection. Voter turnout was 51.5%, above the 30% threshold for validation of the result. [1] Although the referendum itself was non-binding, Prime Minister Mark Rutte had promised to take a potential "no" vote into account prior to the referendum. [2]

The result of the referendum was swiftly completely disregarded with the act coming into force two months later, [3] being the third referendum in a row in which the winning side did not have their wishes respected by the government.

Background

The draft Intelligence and Security Agencies Act 2017 was laid before the States General by the Government of the Netherlands at the end of 2016. On 14 February 2017, a majority in the House of Representatives voted in support of the act, [4] which was then approved in the Senate on 11 July. [5] Although a referendum will be held, the government has indicated it plans for the law to nevertheless to go into effect on 1 May 2018. [6]

Request

StageRequiredReceivedValid
Preliminary requests10,00019,26617,162 [7]
Definitive requests300,000417,354384,126 [8]

A campaign to obtain sufficient support declarations for a referendum was initiated by a group of students at the University of Amsterdam concerned about the sweeping surveillance powers granted to the General Intelligence and Security Service (AIVD) under the law. [6] On 1 November 2017, the Electoral Council (Kiesraad) announced that a sufficient number of signatures had been collected to trigger an advisory referendum on the tapping law, with 384,126 valid signatures, over 92 percent of those collected, well above the 300,000 required for a referendum. [9]

Party positions

The referendum comes after the formation of the Third Rutte cabinet following the 2017 general election, [9] with the coalition divided whether to hold a referendum on the law, Democrats 66 (D66) being the only one of the four coalition parties that voted against disregarding the result ahead of the referendum. [10]

The party positions listed below are based on the vote of the law in the House of Representatives on 14 February 2017, with the exception of Forum for Democracy (FvD), which was not represented in the lower chamber before the 2017 general election. [11]

PartyCurrent seatsPosition
VVD People's Party for Freedom and Democracy
Volkspartij voor Vrijheid en Democratie
33 / 150
For
PVV Party for Freedom
Partij voor de Vrijheid
20 / 150
For*
CDA Christian Democratic Appeal
Christen-Democratisch Appèl
19 / 150
For
D66 Democrats 66
Democraten 66
19 / 150
For
GL GreenLeft
GroenLinks
14 / 150
Against
SP Socialist Party
Socialistische Partij
14 / 150
Against
PvdA Labour Party
Partij van de Arbeid
9 / 150
For
CU Christian Union
ChristenUnie
5 / 150
For
PvdD Party for the Animals
Partij voor de Dieren
5 / 150
Against
50+ 50PLUS
4 / 150
For
SGP Reformed Political Party
Staatkundig Gereformeerde Partij
3 / 150
For
DENK Denk
3 / 150
Against
FvD Forum for Democracy
Forum voor Democratie
2 / 150
Against

* PVV announced that even though they voted in favour, they would respect the outcome of the referendum.

Opinion polls

Vote in referendum

Polling firmDateForAgainstDon't knowWill not voteLead
Ipsos 20 Mar 201853341319
I&O Research 12 Mar 201851301921
Peil.nl 11 Mar 20184542133
Kantar Public 4 Mar 20183524261510
Ipsos 26 Feb 201848322016
I&O Research 6 Feb 201842283014
Kantar Public 28 Jan 20183222301610
Peil.nl 3 Dec 2017406020
I&O Research [ permanent dead link ]30 Oct 201752321720
I&O Research 9 Oct 201750302020
I&O Research 11 Sep 201760241736

Support for the law

Polling firmDateForAgainstDon't knowLead
GfK 31 Oct 201734531319
GfK 23 Oct 20174049119

Results

Results by province Dutch Intelligence and Security Services Act referendum, 2018 Provincial Results Map.png
Results by province
ChoiceVotes%
For3,122,62846.53
Against3,317,49649.44
Blank270,2884.03
Total6,710,412100.00
Valid votes6,710,41299.65
Invalid votes23,8130.35
Total votes6,734,225100.00
Registered voters/turnout13,064,93251.54
Source: Kiesraad

Results by province or territory

Province or territoryElectorateVoter turnoutIn favourAgainstBlank
Votes %Votes %Votes %
Flag of Drenthe.svg  Drenthe 387,61154.1699,78747.72100,85048.238,4724.05
Flag of Flevoland.svg  Flevoland 297,20650.2867,37745.2477,16851.814,3902.95
Frisian flag.svg  Friesland 504,85542.8097,59445.30111,04951.556,7793.15
Flag of Gelderland.svg  Gelderland 1,602,01654.19415,20748.01411,92447.6337,7374.36
Flag of Groningen.svg  Groningen 458,13137.2261,20035.97105,00961.723,9162.30
Flag of Limburg.svg  Limburg 873,20150.23206,90147.33209,89148.0220,3104.65
North Brabant-Flag.svg  North Brabant 1,947,97348.43469,11549.90430,93245.8440,0324.26
Flag of North Holland.svg  North Holland 2,075,43652.87453,84041.51598,60654.7540,9273.74
Flag of Overijssel.svg  Overijssel 882,34456.92247,30949.41230,93046.1422,3114.46
Utrecht (province)-Flag.svg  Utrecht 969,42157.65253,20845.46278,93550.0824,8634.46
Flag of Zeeland.svg  Zeeland 291,51456.7088,95054.0269,17442.016,5363.97
Flag of Zuid-Holland.svg  South Holland 2,760,06551.22661,82247.00692,44349.1754,0093.84
Flag of the Netherlands.svg Caribbean Netherlands 15,1596.0631834.9858564.3660.66
Source: Kiesraad

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">People's Party for Freedom and Democracy</span> Dutch political party

The People's Party for Freedom and Democracy is a conservative-liberal political party in the Netherlands. The VVD, whose forerunner was the Freedom Party, is a party of the centre-right, which promotes private enterprise and economic liberalism.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Democrats 66</span> Political party in the Netherlands

Democrats 66 is a social liberal political party in the Netherlands, which positions itself in the centre of the political spectrum. It is a member of the Liberal International (LI) and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">General Intelligence and Security Service</span> Agency of the Netherlands

The General Intelligence and Security Service is the intelligence and security agency of the Netherlands, tasked with domestic, foreign and signals intelligence and protecting national security as well as assisting the Five Eyes in investigating foreign citizens. The military counterpart is the Military Intelligence and Security Service (MIVD), which operates under the Ministry of Defence.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mark Rutte</span> Prime Minister of the Netherlands since 2010

Mark Rutte is a Dutch politician who has served as prime minister of the Netherlands since 2010. He was also the leader of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) from 2006 through 2023. He is currently acting in a demissionary capacity, and will not return to politics following the installation of a new cabinet, after the 2023 Dutch general election. On 2 August 2022 he became the longest-serving Prime Minister in the history of the Netherlands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dutch Military Intelligence and Security Service</span>

The Military Intelligence and Security Service is the military intelligence service of the Netherlands, which operates under the Ministry of Defence. It is tasked with investigating the security of the armed forces and collects military intelligence from and about foreign countries. The civilian counterpart is the General Intelligence and Security Service (AIVD), which operates under the Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2012 Dutch general election</span> Election of the members of the House of Representatives

Early general elections were held in the Netherlands on 12 September 2012 after Prime Minister Mark Rutte handed in his government's resignation to Queen Beatrix on 23 April. The 150 seats of the House of Representatives were contested using party-list proportional representation. The People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) received a plurality of the votes, followed by the Labour Party (PvdA).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2017 Dutch general election</span>

General elections were held in the Netherlands on Wednesday 15 March 2017 to elect all 150 members of the House of Representatives.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Referendums in the Netherlands</span>

In the Netherlands, from the entry into force of the Advisory Referendum Act on 1 July 2015, until its repeal on 18 February 2018, most types of primary laws could be subjected to a suspensory, non-binding referendum if requested shortly after royal assent and subsequent proclamation. If a law was rejected by more than half of the votes cast, with a mandatory turnout of at least 30%, its entry into force was to be suspended indefinitely and a follow-up law had to be enacted that either repealed the law or provided for its entry into force.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 Dutch Ukraine–European Union Association Agreement referendum</span> 2016 Dutch referendum on Ukraine–European Union Association agreement

An advisory referendum on the approval of the Ukraine–European Union Association Agreement was held in the Netherlands on 6 April 2016. The referendum question was: "Are you for or against the Approval Act of the Association Agreement between the European Union and Ukraine?"

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2021 Dutch general election</span>

General elections were held in the Netherlands from 15 to 17 March 2021 to elect all 150 members of the House of Representatives. Following the elections and lengthy coalition formation talks, the sitting government remained in power.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Third Rutte cabinet</span> 70th cabinet of the Netherlands

The third Rutte cabinet was the cabinet of the Netherlands from 26 October 2017 until 10 January 2022. It was formed by a coalition government of the political parties People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD), Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA), Democrats 66 (D66) and Christian Union (CU) after the general election of 2017.

Municipal elections were held on 21 March 2018 in 335 municipalities in the Netherlands. This election determined the composition of the municipal councils for the following four years. The election coincided with the Intelligence and Security Services Act referendum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2019 Dutch Senate election</span>

The 2019 election to the Senate of the Netherlands was held on 27 May 2019, two months after the provincial elections.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marijke van Beukering</span> Member of the Dutch House of Representatives

Maria Josefina Theresia Gabriëlle "Marijke" van Beukering-Huijbregts is a Dutch politician, who has served in the House of Representatives and who has been the Mayor of Nieuwegein since 2023. She is a member of the social-liberal party Democrats 66 (D66).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hans Vijlbrief</span> Dutch politician (born 1963)

Johannes Alexander "Hans" Vijlbrief is a Dutch civil servant, economist, and politician, who currently serves as State Secretary for the Extractive Industries. He is a member of the social-liberal party Democrats 66 (D66).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lisa van Ginneken</span> Member of the Dutch House of Representatives

Lisa Mianti van Ginneken is a Dutch politician of the social liberal party Democrats 66 (D66). She worked as a software developer and later gave organizational trainings. She started serving as chair of the organization Transvisie in 2017 and became a member of parliament after the 2021 general election. Van Ginneken is the first transgender person to be elected into the Dutch House of Representatives, where she is her party's spokesperson for IT, privacy, family law, and mobility.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Raoul Boucke</span> Dutch politician (born 1975)

Raoul Marc Boucke is a Surinamese-Dutch civil servant and politician, who has served as a member of the House of Representatives since 2021. He is a member of the social liberal party Democrats 66 (D66). Prior to his political career, Boucke worked for two government ministries, the European Commission, as well as the Dutch representation to the European Union.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeanet van der Laan</span> Dutch footballer and politician

Jeanet Maria Petronella van der Laan is a Dutch retired footballer, teacher, and politician of the social liberal party Democrats 66 (D66).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Romke de Jong</span> Dutch politician (born 1984)

Romke Harke de Jong is a Dutch entrepreneur and politician of the social liberal party Democrats 66 (D66). He took over and expanded his father's ice cream catering company and served on the municipal council of Opsterland in Friesland between 2010 and 2018. De Jong became a member of the States of Friesland the following year, and he was elected to the House of Representatives in the 2021 general election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anne-Marijke Podt</span> Dutch politician (born 1975)

Anne-Marijke Podt is a Dutch politician of the social liberal party Democrats 66 (D66), who has been serving as a member of the House of Representatives since September 2021. She had previously been a member of the Utrecht municipal council starting in 2014, and she has worked as an aid worker and as an independent adviser for municipalities.

References

  1. Results referendum on Wiv: majority against Kiesraad
  2. "Dutch referendum: Spy tapping powers 'rejected'". BBC. 22 March 2018. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
  3. "The Intelligence and Security Services Act 2017 - About AIVD - AIVD". 11 October 2019.
  4. "Tweede Kamer stemt voor 'aftapwet' inlichtingendiensten". Algemeen Dagblad. 14 February 2017. Retrieved 1 November 2017.
  5. "Nieuwe Wet op de inlichtingen- en veiligheidsdiensten is een feit". Algemene Inlichtingen- en Veiligheidsdienst. 11 July 2017. Archived from the original on 7 November 2017. Retrieved 1 November 2017.
  6. 1 2 "Raadgevend referendum over 'aftapwet' komt er". NOS. 1 November 2017. Retrieved 1 November 2017.
  7. "Inleidend verzoek referendum over Wiv toegelaten". Kiesraad. 1 September 2017. Retrieved 2 November 2017.
  8. "Referendum over Wiv gaat door". Kiesraad. 1 November 2017. Retrieved 2 November 2017.
  9. 1 2 "Nederland gaat stemmen over 'sleepwet'". Trouw. 1 November 2017. Retrieved 1 November 2017.
  10. Lennart Zandbergen (28 October 2017). "CDA en D66 oneens over betekenis referendum 'sleepwet'". Het Financieele Dagblad. Retrieved 1 November 2017.
  11. Referendum over sleepwet (PDF) (Report). I&O Research. 12 October 2017. Retrieved 1 November 2017.