Artikel 74: Membership of the Council of State

Artikel 74
  1. The King shall be President of the Council of State. The heir presumptive shall be legally entitled to have a seat on the Council on attaining the age of eighteen. Other members of the Royal House may be granted a seat on the Council by or in accordance with an Act of Parliament.
  2. The members of the Council shall be appointed for life by Royal Decree.
  3. They shall cease to be members of the Council on resignation or on attaining an age to be determined by Act of Parliament.
  4. They may be suspended or dismissed from membership by the Council in instances specified by Act of Parliament.
  5. Their legal status shall in other respects be regulated by Act of Parliament.

In andere talen:

English

  1. The King shall be President of the Council of State. The heir presumptive shall be legally entitled to have a seat on the Council on attaining the age of eighteen. Other members of the Royal House may be granted a seat on the Council by or in accordance with an Act of Parliament.
  2. The members of the Council shall be appointed for life by Royal Decree.
  3. They shall cease to be members of the Council on resignation or on attaining an age to be determined by Act of Parliament.
  4. They may be suspended or dismissed from membership by the Council in instances specified by Act of Parliament.
  5. Their legal status shall in other respects be regulated by Act of Parliament.

Français

  1. Le Roi est président du Conseil d'État. Le successeur présomptif du Roi siége de plein droit au Conseil après avoir atteint l'âge de dix-huit ans. Le droit de siéger au Conseil peut être accordé à d'autres membres de la maison royale par la loi ou en vertu de la loi.
  2. Les membres du Conseil sont nommés à vie par décret royal.
  3. Il est mis fin à leurs fonctions sur leur demande et lorsqu'ils atteignent un âge à fixer par la loi.
  4. Ils peuvent être suspendus ou destitués par le Conseil dans les cas spécifiés par la loi.
  5. Leur statut est réglé pour le surplus par la loi.

Deutsch

  1. Der König ist Vorsitzender des Staatsrats. Der mutmaßliche Nachfolger des Königs hat nach Vollendung des achtzehnten Lebensjahres von Rechts wegen Sitz im Staatsrat. Durch Gesetz oder kraft Gesetzes können andere Mitglieder des Königshauses Sitz im Staatsrat erhalten.
  2. Die Mitglieder des Staatsrats werden durch königlichen Erlass auf Lebenszeit ernannt.
  3. Sie werden auf eigenen Wunsch oder bei Erreichen einer durch Gesetz festzulegenden Altersgrenze entlassen.
  4. In den durch Gesetz bezeichneten Fällen können sie vom Staatsrat suspendiert oder entlassen werden.
  5. Ihre Rechtsstellung ist im Übrigen durch Gesetz geregelt.

Español

  1. El Rey es el presidente del Consejo de Estado. El sucesor presunto del Rey, una vez que haya cumplido los dieciocho años de edad, formará parte del Consejo de pleno derecho. Podrá disponerse por o en virtud de la ley que otros miembros de la Casa Real formen parte del Consejo.
  2. Los miembros del Consejo son nombrados de por vida por real decreto.
  3. Cesarán en sus funciones a petición propia o al cumplir la edad que la ley establezca.
  4. En los casos previstos por la ley podrán ser suspendidos o separados por el Consejo.
  5. La ley regulará los demás aspectos de su estatuto.

Explanation

Please note: Only the Dutch-language version of the Constitution has legal effect. 

The King is the Chairman of the Council of State. The Crown Prince(ss) may attend the Council's meetings upon reaching the age of eighteen. The law may also stipulate this for other members of the Royal House. For instance, the Prince Consorts held seats on the Council of State, and Máxima also took a seat on the Council of State after her marriage to Willem-Alexander.

The members of the Council are appointed for life by Royal Decree, i.e., by the government. They may only be dismissed:

  • at their own request;
  • when they have reached an age specified by law (which is 70 years in accordance with Article 3 of the Council of State Act);
  • by the Council of State itself in certain cases specified in the law (Article 3a of the Council of State Act).

The Council of State may also suspend a member in cases specified in the law.

This ensures that their legal position closely resembles that of members of the judiciary and that the independence of the members of the Council is guaranteed. After all, the Council of State also fulfills an important function in the field of administrative jurisdiction.