News item | 23-06-2023 | 4:00 pm
From the spring of 2024, the cabinet wants the Dutch to participate in a national citizens’ climate forum to think about sustainable consumption, circularity and travel. In this ‘Citizens Forum on Climate’, about 175 people will jointly give advice on how we can eat, use things and travel in the Netherlands in a way that is better for the climate. This is written by Minister Jetten for Climate and Energy and Minister Bruins Slot of the Interior and Kingdom Relations in response to a letter from the House of Representatives about the establishment of a citizens’ forum.
The goal of the citizens’ forum is to increase people’s influence and say on major social changes, such as the climate challenge, by asking them for advice. In addition, the government wants to strengthen representative democracy by involving more people in political decision-making that affects them. Last summer, the cabinet announced that it would explore the options for this together with the House of Representatives.
Minister Jetten: “The climate and energy transition is changing our country and our way of life. That affects everyone. Soon we will eat, consume and produce differently, and we will travel differently. Precisely because these changes are drastic and affect people in their daily lives and the choices they make, it is important that they are given more influence and say. The cabinet wants to listen to what they expect from the government, companies and themselves in this area and what they advise the cabinet and parliament to keep our country and our planet liveable for future generations.”
Minister Bruins Slot: “It is valuable and necessary to involve people more actively and better in issues that affect daily life, for example about climate and energy. Especially people who don’t naturally make their voices heard. We do that with a citizens’ forum and it is society’s turn.”
175 Dutch people can participate in the citizens’ forum, who meet regularly for a number of months. Participants are selected by lottery to ensure that the composition of the citizens’ forum is a cross-section of society. The citizens’ forum will have an independent chairman, with an independent secretariat that will support them. Participants of the citizens’ forum formulate their advice in a transparent manner on the basis of factual and balanced information. The citizens’ forum receives information from experts and the participants themselves can also ask experts to share their knowledge. To also ensure a good connection between the citizens’ forum and the rest of society, the other residents of the Netherlands can provide input to the citizens’ forum at set times, for example through an online dialogue. The secretariat will also enter into discussions with potential partners such as the National Climate Platform, the Scientific Climate Council and Milieu Centraal about how they can collaborate in this regard.
What happens to the advice?
In order for the citizens’ forum to succeed, it is necessary that it is clear in advance what politicians will do with the advice of the citizens’ forum. The citizens’ forum participants put a lot of effort and time into their advice. The advice is very valuable to the cabinet and the House of Representatives, which is why they will take it seriously. The government has laid down that it will send a response to the advice within 6 months and give reasons for each recommendation individually as to why it will or will not adopt it. One year after the end, the government discusses the progress of the implementation of the recommendations with the citizens’ forum.