Does the proposed Dutch Defence Readiness Act go too far?
In the media image: Defrino Maasy on Unsplash
The Dutch Ministry of Defence wants to respond faster to international threats by expanding army barracks and military training areas. Assistant Professor Rogier Kegge comments in news programme ‘EenVandaag’ on the proposed legislation and the legal protection of local residents.
Current laws restrict the necessary expansion and readiness of the armed forces in the Netherlands. The Defence Readiness Act (Wet op defensiegereedheid, Wodg) will enable certain procedures to be carried out faster. But the question is, what gets priority: housing or defence? And the discussion about nitrogen emissions also needs to be considered.
Kegge calls the proposed legislation a kind of emergency law without clear criteria. He adds that it is not clear in which cases the Ministry of Defence can claim an exception. 'The legislation still needs some changes. It currently gives the Ministry of Defence too much of a free rein, while the legal protection of citizens and vulnerable nature areas also need to be taken into account.'
More information?
Watch the EenVandaag broadcast (in Dutch)