“The Netherlands is a parliamentary constitutional monarchy. The prime minister is the head of government and the monarch is the head of state. A council of ministers holds the executive power. The country is divided into 12 provinces and 342 municipalities. It is also divided into 21 water districts, governed by an executive board that has authority in matters of water management. 6 overseas countries and territories in the Caribbean are also part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. However, these territories are not part of the EU.”
Source: European Union. EU Countries: Netherlands. European Union. Last accessed February 27, 2025.
“The Dutch political system is a parliamentary democracy with the king as the formal head of state. Provided by the Constitution, the legislative power is exerted by two chambers: the First Chamber (“Eerste Kamer” or Senate) and the Second Chamber (“Tweede Kamer” or House of Representatives). The primate is with the Second Chamber, whose task it is to amend and approve bills put forward by the government. The First Chamber has a supervisory role as it can only approve or reject laws that have been passed by the Second Chamber. The 150 members of the Second Chamber are directly elected by Dutch nationals over 18 years; in principle every four years but earlier if a government has fallen. The 75 members of the First Chamber are elected for four years by the 12 provincial councils. The head of state, currently King Willem Alexander, has no executive power (overheid.nl, 2016; den Exter et al., 2004).
“A consequence of the fragmented political landscape in the Netherlands is that governments are normally based on a coalition of parties that jointly can rely on a majority in the parliament and that have agreed on a programme for the coming four years and how to fill the posts in the government. The formation of such an agreement can be a complex and time-consuming process (Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal, 2016). Members of the Cabinet (the Ministers and Secretaries of State) cannot be members of the parliament.”
Source: Kroneman M, Boerma W, van den Berg M, Groenewegen P, de Jong J, van Ginneken E (2016). The Netherlands: health system review. Health Systems in Transition, 2016; 18(2):1–239.
Netherlands Health System Overview
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Outcomes
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Costs for Consumers
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Page last updated August 8, 2025 by Doug McVay, Editor.