D66 and PRO go ahead with plan for compulsory party membership

Political parties D66 and PRO have amended their plan to compel parties in parliament to have a membership structure after the original version was criticised by the Council of State.

D66, who are part of the centre-right coalition, and left-wing opposition party PRO want to establish a “democratic baseline” to make parties and MPs more accountable.

The Council of State, which reviews all bills to see if they are compatible with the existing laws including the constitution, said there was scope to introduce compulsory membership, but the proposed sanctions, such as banning non-compliers from standing in elections, went too far.

Some right-wing parties see the move an attack on the PVV, the far-right party founded and led by Geert Wilders, which has no constitution or membership structure but has 19 seats in parliament.

It won 26 seats at the general election last October, but seven MPs broke away in January in protest at Wilders’ refusal to admit members or allow leadership challenges.

D66 MP Joost Sneller and his PRO counterpart Mohamed Mohandis have now revised the amendment so that new parties will be given five years to create a membership structure before they face being excluded from elections.

Works council

They hope to add it to a new law on political parties which the cabinet is due to bring before parliament in the autumn. MPs will have to approve the amendment in a separate vote before the whole bill is debated and voted on in both houses.

Sneller told the Telegraaf: “I think that we should have this standard in a democracy. If you have 50 members of staff, you have to have a works council. That’s what the law says and nobody thinks it’s strange.”

The newspaper reported that four other parties, including the Christian Democrats (CDA), who are in government, are willing to back the move, which would give it 71 votes, five short of a majority.

The right-wing liberal VVD is undecided, but its 22 votes are potentially decisive. Party leader Dilan Yesilgöz indicated during last year’s election campaign that she was in favour of the plan.