MPs pass bill replacing repeat-offender rules for traffic offences
The Tweede Kamer has passed a bill that replaces the repeat-offender scheme for serious traffic offences and adds measures against driving under the influence.
The Tweede Kamer, the lower house of parliament, has passed a bill that scraps the current repeat-offender scheme (recidiveregeling) for serious traffic offences. In its place, the bill brings in various measures to tackle driving under the influence more effectively.
The bill amends the Road Traffic Act 1994 (Wegenverkeerswet 1994) and the Code of Criminal Procedure. It aims to improve the criminal justice response to people who drive under the influence. Justice and Security minister D. Yeşilgöz-Zegerius is the minister responsible for the bill.
The bill must still go to the Eerste Kamer, the Senate, before it can become law.
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Tweede Kamer
The House of Representatives, the lower and more powerful house of the Dutch parliament. Its 150 members are elected directly; it can amend bills and holds the cabinet to account.
recidiveregeling
The recidiveregeling is the Dutch scheme that imposes stricter consequences on drivers who commit a serious traffic offence again within a set period after an earlier one. It is a repeat-offender regime: the penalty or driving disqualification that applies depends on whether the person has offended before. It matters because it sets out when repeat drunk driving and other serious traffic offences lead to harsher measures, such as longer driving bans.