PHILIPSBURG:--- Parliament unanimously approved the installation and composition of its permanent and ad hoc committees, as well as the committees of the Latin American Parliament, during a public meeting held on Friday morning, September 11, 2026.
The meeting opened with a quorum of 10 Members of Parliament.
Parliament proceeded with three agenda points:
1. The list of incoming documents.
2. Advice regarding the installation and composition of Parliament’s permanent and ad hoc committees.
3. Advice regarding the installation and composition of the Parlatino committees.
Incoming Documents Approved
Parliament first considered incoming documents numbered IS/1325 through IS/1350 from the 2025–2026 parliamentary year.
No Member of Parliament requested the floor to discuss the documents. The list and the proposed handling of the documents were subsequently approved.
Parliament Establishes 17 Committees
Under the second agenda point, Parliament considered the advice concerning the installation and composition of its permanent and ad hoc committees.
The chairperson explained that Article 21, paragraph three, of Parliament’s Rules of Order requires establishing and constituting the committees.
Faction leaders were asked by letter dated August 10, 2026, to indicate which members of their respective factions would participate in the different committees. The Central Committee discussed the submissions during Meeting Number One, held on Wednesday, September 9.
Parliament has established a total of 17 permanent and ad hoc committees:
• Committee of General Affairs
• Committee of Public Housing, Spatial Planning, Environment and Infrastructure
• Committee of Justice
• Committee of Finance
• Committee of Tourism, Economic Affairs, Transport and Telecommunication
• Committee of Education, Culture, Youth and Sports Affairs
• Committee of Public Health, Social Development and Labor
• Committee of Kingdom Affairs and Interparliamentary Relations
• Committee for Petitions
• Committee for the Country’s Expenditures
• Committee of Parlatino Matters
• Ad Hoc Committee for the Preparation of the Construction of a New Parliament Building
• Ad Hoc Committee on Integrity
• Ad Hoc Committee on Electoral Reform
• Committee for District Councils
• Committee for Constitutional Affairs and Decolonization
• Committee for Agriculture, Fisheries and Animal Husbandry
No member requested the floor on the proposal, and no one requested a roll-call vote. The Central Committee's advice was therefore approved unanimously.
Travel Rules and Four-Member Limit Approved
Parliament also approved the Central Committee’s proposal that the guidelines governing parliamentary work visits, adopted on June 8, 2015, must be observed.
For work visits connected to the national holidays of the other islands of the former Netherlands Antilles, participation will be limited to a maximum of four delegates—one representative from each faction—based on a rotation schedule.
Thirteen Parlatino Committees Approved
Under the third agenda point, Parliament unanimously approved the installation and composition of 13 Parlatino committees.
Faction leaders had also been asked to submit the names of the MPs they wanted to serve on those committees. The Central Committee considered those submissions before presenting the proposal to the public meeting.
Parliament approved continuing to apply the 2015 travel guidelines to committee-related Parlatino work visits.
For Parlatino committees consisting of three or more members, only two members will travel to attend a meeting. Participation will be determined through a rotation schedule involving members one and two, followed by members three and four, and then members five and six where applicable.
No MP requested the floor, and no roll-call vote was sought. The Central Committee’s advice was therefore accepted unanimously.
Before closing the meeting, the chairperson explained that the committees must now meet internally to elect their respective chairpersons and vice-chairpersons.