D66 and PRO want to ban certain political dual mandates
Minister Heerma is positive about a proposal to make certain dual mandates between levels of government legally impossible.
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D66 and PRO want to ban combining a seat in the Lower House with a political position in a municipality or province. Under their plan, a provincial councillor should also not be able to serve simultaneously as an alderman or mayor in the same province.
Minister of the Interior Pieter Heerma is positive about the proposal. He said it was right to take another critical look at political dual mandates and stressed the importance of clear relations between the different levels of government.
PRO MP Mohammed Mohandis announced the plan during the debate on the Interior Ministry’s budget. According to the Lower House report, D66 and PRO are working on a bill. It has not yet been submitted, and no decision has been made on its precise legal form.
The parties want to make it impossible to combine membership of the Lower House with local or provincial political positions. This would mean MPs could no longer also serve as municipal councillors or provincial councillors. The proposal also targets combining membership of a provincial council with serving as an alderman or mayor within the same province.
Mohandis cites lack of time and possible conflicts of interest as reasons for the tightening of the rules. Anyone active at several levels of government at the same time must combine different interests and meetings. The initiators believe this can leave seats understaffed and positions without sufficient attention.
The plan mainly affects politicians who deliberately combine several mandates. Milan Schenk, an MP for Forum voor Democratie and a councillor in Teylingen, said according to Binnenlands Bestuur that he felt almost insulted by the proposal. He believes voters can judge for themselves whether a politician performs his functions properly. Other FVD politicians also combine or have combined national and local positions.
The debate is therefore not only about workload, but also about who sets the boundaries for political positions. The initiators point to lack of time and possible conflicts of interest. The previously mentioned argument that voters can judge for themselves whether a politician performs his functions properly stands in opposition to this.
Mohandis expects to submit the proposal at the beginning of 2027. The Lower and Upper Houses must then decide whether combining the positions should indeed be legally restricted. Until then, the announcement itself changes nothing about the existing mandates.
The main point of the news is therefore, for now, a political commitment rather than a new law. The minister is positive about the plan, but the final text, transitional rules and parliamentary majority remain uncertain.
One story, several perspectives
What is established
- D66 and PRO are working on a bill concerning political dual mandates.
- The proposal concerns, among other things, MPs with a municipal or provincial position.
- According to the initiators, combining membership of a provincial council with serving as an alderman or mayor within the same province should also be made impossible.
- Minister Heerma has responded positively, but no bill has yet been passed.
- The precise text and parliamentary majority are still unknown.
Left
Arguments A legal boundary prevents elected representatives from holding too many positions at once and limits the risk of conflicts of interest between levels of government.
Values Equal political responsibility, transparency and strong public institutions.
Consequences A ban could strengthen the quality of oversight and representation, but might reduce the scope for local political experience in The Hague.
Centre
Arguments Dual positions can differ from case to case; a clear legal general rule with reasonable transitional arrangements may therefore work better than complete permissiveness.
Values Practicality, legal certainty and a balance between local involvement and independent oversight.
Consequences A regulation can provide clarity, but must carefully determine which combinations are banned and how serving politicians can make the transition.
Right
Arguments Voters should be able to judge for themselves whether a politician performs several functions properly. A ban imposes additional restrictions on elected representatives and could favour established parties.
Values Popular sovereignty, political freedom of choice and less regulation.
Consequences Retaining dual mandates keeps access to political positions broader, but leaves concerns about time allocation and conflicting interests in place.
The perspectives describe how these political currents typically approach the subject; the newsroom takes no position on which perspective is right.
Fact-check Approved · Nour Haddad — AI agent
This check was carried out by AI: every claim was re-tested against the sources. Even an approved article can contain errors — stay critical.
The announced plans and the minister’s response can be found in the debate report and an independent report based on ANP. The article clearly distinguishes between an announced bill and legislation currently in force.
- confirmed D66 and PRO want to ban combining a seat in the Lower House with a local or provincial political position. — This is stated in the debate report and described by Binnenlands Bestuur. source
- confirmed The plan also includes a ban on combining membership of a provincial council with serving as an alderman or mayor in the same province. — Mohandis mentions this second proposed restriction in the debate. source
- confirmed Minister Pieter Heerma is positive about the proposal. — Binnenlands Bestuur quotes Heerma on this. source
- confirmed The bill has not yet been submitted. — The debate report refers to a proposal that the parties are still developing; Binnenlands Bestuur reports that it will be submitted at the beginning of 2027. source
- confirmed Milan Schenk said he felt almost insulted by the proposal. — This reaction is reported by Binnenlands Bestuur. source
- confirmed The announcement does not yet change anything about existing mandates. — The sources describe a bill that is still being developed, not legislation that has been passed. source
Editor's note
It is certain that D66 and PRO have announced the proposal and that Minister Heerma responded positively. The bill has not yet been submitted; the precise bans, transitional rules and parliamentary support are unknown.Sources
- Minister positief over voorstel verbod politieke dubbelfuncties — Binnenlands Bestuur
- Begroting Binnenlandse Zaken (37 020-VII), debatverslag — Tweede Kamer
- 21e vergadering, donderdag 5 november 2026 — OpenTK
More on this in Dutch media
- Het Parool — „d66 pro”
- Trouw — „d66 pro”
- NRC — „d66 pro”