Parliament vote for plan to release prisoners two weeks early ends in a tie

The lower house of Dutch parliament are in a stalemate regarding plans to allow prisoners to leave jail two weeks before the end of their sentence. A vote in the Tweede Kamer about the much-discussed motion from BBB parliament member Marieke Wijen-Nass to abandon the plan of State Secretary of Justice Ingrid Coenradie ended in a tie on Tuesday (74-74). The Tweede Kamer will vote again on the matter next week.

Prisoners are currently allowed to leave three days before the end of their sentence to make space in the crowded prisons, but Coenradie thinks that this measure will not be sufficient soon.

All the other options have already been tried, she said last week in the Tweede Kamer. “We have looked at everything.” The only other alternative would be to not arrest any more people. “This is not a realistic scenario.”

Coenradie asked the Tweede Kamer to support the emergency measure earlier this month. She takes the lack of response as approval, she told ANP after the debate. "If nothing comes, then I have indicated that I will begin working on the plan.”

Next week’s vote could be fatal for Coenradie’s plans as parliamentary law states that a second stalemate would mean that the plans are blocked. A significant issue for Coenradie is the fact that the coalition parties BBB, VVD, and PVV are all against the plan.

The Tweede Kamer feels that the issue could be alleviated by only imprisoning people when it is strictly necessary. A majority on Tuesday supported an amendment by Joost Sneller (D66) aimed at combating pre-trial detention. Suspects can initially be held at the police station for six days. The examining magistrate and then the judge can decide to extend that time. As a result, the suspect can be held in a detention center, which resembles a prison.

The Research and Data Center (WODC) feels that more fines and community service sentences would help with the issue. They, too, are not in favor of Coenradie's plan. “In the short term, this will make room for other prisoners, but it will also ensure that the number of prisoners remains high, and there will be more pressure on prison capacity.”