Tomorrow (Thursday) is the last day of parliamentary business ahead of the official summer recess for MPs – but it is set to be a long one, with votes timetabled up until 03.30 hours on Friday morning.

Officially, parliament is on holiday until September 3, with cabinet ministers taking a four-week break from July 20. But an extra week has been added to take MPs up to the general election on September 12. Out-going MPs will take their seats for a week, until the new-look parliament is officially sworn in a week later.
Before the recess starts, however, there is a lot of work to get through. Thursday’s roster includes 36 different subjects, including final motions, amendments and votes on issues which have already been debated several times in parliament.
Party
From piracy, young refugees, labour law, risk policy, animal health and antibiotics to waste disposal, defence ministry cuts and privacy law, there is a long list that needs to be cleared before the final bell is rung.
‘Traditionally, parliament then empties and MPs head for the bar at the Nieuwspoort press centre where drinks flow until well after the sun comes up,’ writes the Volkskrant.
‘It is the moment when MPs and ministers can let off steam after a hectic parliamentary year. But this year the VVD and PVV representatives will moderate their drinking. The next morning the VVD presents its manifesto and the PVV its list of parliamentary hopefuls.’
Although parliament can be recalled to debate emergencies (and the situation in Europe could very well prompt this) this year an added complication to a relaxing summer break is the election campaign.
Kick-off

Most of the manifestos and lists of candidate MPs have been published and campaigning has as good as begun. The VVD is planning to hold its election congress on August 25, which is being seen as the kick-off for the official campaign.
Prime minister Mark Rutte will then no longer be the premier but ‘two and a half weeks on the campaign trail’.
However, the Volkskrant points out the VVD is riding high in the polls and will benefit from a shorter campaign. But the Christian Democrats and green party GroenLinks will take their time to try to repair the damage, the paper says, adding that Labour leader Diederik Samsom is also likely to use the summer to boost his profile to voters.