Have we dodged a bullet?

UPDATE: Hurried efforts by the Dutch government to make various Covid measures a permanent part of public health law have now stalled in the Upper House. Our parliamentarians will not be rushed.

Kaykers on the Amstel

Scarcely was the “ink dry” on my earlier post about the proposed legislation to make a various Covid measures a permanent part of the Dutch Public Health Act before we have an update: The Senaat, the Dutch Upper House, had decided that there needs to be an expert consultation and additional discussion rounds before a final vote can be taken on the so-called Pandemiewet. It is not yet known which experts will be invited. According to De Andere Krant:

The Upper House decision is a setback for the Dutch Cabinet, which wanted rush through the new Pandemiewet. Health Minister Ernst Kuipers had warned that spread of Covid in China made it imperative to pass the law quickly. However, it seems that the Senaat does not to be rushed. The members of the Sentaat appear to have been spooked by growing public opposition to the law.

As I discussed in my piece last week, Upper House elections are slated for March 15. Given the abysmally low approval ratings of Mark Rutte’s fragile ruling coalition, it is safe to say that long-overdue Regime Change is coming to the Dutch capital. According to veteran pollster and data-crunching wizard Maurice de Hond, the Upper House elections are likely to result in further splintering of the political landscape, with it now even less likely for the coalition to maintain a majority in the Upper House. Since the Pandemiewet, is not likely to be formally approved before the public heads to the polls, this does not bode well for Health Minister Ernst Kuipers feverish efforts to rush the contentious legislation through parliament for reasons no one really knows.

Friend of this Substack

Godfree Roberts

(Here Comes China) dropped the following quote in a comment on the previous piece, and I thought it so good I want to share it here:

"It seems unavoidable that those advocating the current pandemic and preparedness agenda are intentionally misleading the public in order to achieve their aims. Cost-benefit analyses are essential for any large-scale intervention, and their absence reflects either incompetence or malfeasance". — David Bell

Thankfully our parliamentarians in the Senaat are now asking to see those cost-benefit analyses, and not simply taking Ernst Kuipers’ questionable and dubious word for it.

The Dutch have a proverb, van uitstel komt afstel, which translates to something like delay leads to defeat. Usually it is considered an admonition, but this is one of those times when parliamentary procrastination seems like a cardinal virtue.

Constitutional long-covid