Lobbying former politicians curbed | Inland

A large majority of the House of Representatives adopted a motion by MP Khadija Arib (PvdA) to achieve this. It is a thorn in the side of Arib – until recently President of the House – that former MPs can visit political groups to represent the interests of their new employer.

This is possible because of the pass they have in their possession as a former representative of the people. In addition, they are allowed to go anywhere in the building. Outside the cheese dome in The Hague, the impression can therefore arise that all sorts of things are being cooked up by political friends among themselves.

Inequality

But it also creates inequality against advocates without such a past. They have to enter with an access pass for lobbyists and such a visit is bound by rules and a lot less easy. For example, they only have access to the ‘semi-public spaces’.

Arib hinted during a debate that the issue is sensitive. As chair of the presidency – the executive committee of the House of Representatives – she said that she had already proposed restricting access to lobbying former MPs. At the time, there was not enough support, she said. D66 also steered towards stricter rules months ago.

Collect redundancy pay or become mayor

Not only MPs who lobby are under a magnifying glass. The outgoing cabinet is working on drawing up new rules to prevent former ministers from suddenly working with a political network and knowledge in a sector in which they took far-reaching decisions until recently.

Those plans to clamp down on lobbying by former ministers are so far-reaching that unrest has broken out in political The Hague. Insiders fear that departing ministers and secretaries of state can do little more than collect redundancy pay somewhere for a long time or become mayor somewhere.

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