Following the Dutch House of Representatives, the Dutch Senate has now also adopted the ‘Expansion Act’ proposed by Eric van der Burg, State secretary for Kingdom Relations. The bill aims to contribute to more effective governance and broader representation of residents on the island councils. This is achieved by increasing the number of island council members and island commissioners on Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba.
The bill states that the number of Island Council members will be gradually increased at the next elections on 17 March 2027. During the first phase, Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba will be allocated two additional Island Council members. This means the number for Bonaire will increase from 9 to 11, while the number for St. Eustatius and Saba will increase from 5 to 7 respectively. The number of commissioners is also set to increase from 3 to a maximum of 4 on Bonaire and from 2 to 3 on St. Eustatius and Saba.
Representation and governance capacity
The increase in the number of Island Council members and Island Commissioners is part of the reform of the Public Bodies (Bonaire, St Eustatius and Saba) Act (Wet Openbare Lichamen Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba, WolBES). The number of council members and commissioners has not been adjusted to reflect population growth since 2010. The islands have also indicated that they have too few commissioners to cope with the heavy workload. Increasing the number of administrators will enhance the governance capacity.
Comply or Explain
Once the various steps set out in the bill have been completed, the number of Island Council members will be determined by the population of the islands, and the number of Commissioners will be determined by the number of Island Council members.
As State secretary Van der Burg explains, “This is a good example of the ‘comply or explain’ principle. Our intention is to make the same arrangements as we have done for the municipal councils in the European part of the Netherlands. At the same time, we are taking account of the specific situation on the islands and are adopting a step-by-step approach. I am pleased that the Dutch Senate treated the bill as a priority. By increasing the number of Island Council members and Commissioners, we will be strengthening both democracy and the islands’ ability to take decisive action.”
With the approval of the Dutch Senate, the Expansion Act has now become official and will come into effect in time for the Island Council elections in March 2027.