Dutch Civil Servants Increasingly Draw the Line on Moral Grounds, Survey Finds – StMaartenNews.com – News Views Reviews

The Binnenhof in The Hague, home of the Dutch government. A new survey finds that many civil servants in the Netherlands are willing to draw a “moral line” when government directives conflict with core democratic principles. Officials feel their loyalty lies foremost with the rule of law and the public interest, rather than with any transient political authority.

THE HAGUE — A growing number of civil servants in the Netherlands say they will not “serve every administration” unconditionally, according to an Ipsos survey of over 1,350 government employees commissioned by the Dutch public governance magazine Binnenlands Bestuur. Only 30% of respondents agreed that they can serve any government no matter who is in charge – down from 36% in late 2024. In contrast, 37% of civil servants now explicitly say there are some governments they could not work under, drawing a firm moral boundary based on fundamental values. Members of this group stress that their service is conditional on respect for the democratic rule of law, human rights, and the general good; many indicated they would resist, refuse orders, or even resign if a future administration were to violate those core principles through policies of exclusion, discrimination or undermining constitutional rights. One respondent bluntly summarized the sentiment: “My moral norms and values go above serving a government”.

Despite this shift on where loyalty ends, the survey found that civil servants’ professional ethos remains largely stable in many respects. Virtually all respondents still feel a strong responsibility to serve the general interest (93%) and the citizenry (88%), just as they did last year. Most continue to describe themselves as “loyal” first and “critical” second in their role, and only about 11% would label themselves “activist”. Opinions on the appropriateness of activism in the civil service are sharply divided: 28% agree that “being activist does not befit a civil servant’s role,” while 39% disagree. Meanwhile, a slight majority – 57% – still feel that a civil servant’s job is to implement whatever policies the duly elected politicians decide, indicating that traditional norms of bureaucratic loyalty remain prevalent even as moral red lines are increasingly acknowledged.

The Ipsos study (conducted in May 2025) also reveals how civil servants view the impact of the current Dutch government, the Schoof cabinet, on their work. One in five civil servants (22%) reported that the installation of Prime Minister Dick Schoof’s administration has had a tangible influence on how they can or must do their jobs. Respondents attributed this mainly to the new cabinet’s austerity measures, policy changes, and a hardening tone in political and administrative debates, which together have brought higher workload and uncertainty to the public sector. For example, planned budget cuts were said to reduce staffing and force the scrapping of some tasks, and local officials noted that shifting national policy priorities – and the accompanying atmosphere of polarization – have trickled down to constrain work at the municipal level.

Notably, civil servants’ confidence in the Schoof government has declined markedly over the past year. In September 2024, a majority still saw Prime Minister Schoof’s long background as a top civil servant as an asset; 57% considered it a plus point at the time. By May 2025, that confidence had dropped to 44%. Likewise, the share of officials who trusted that Schoof would keep government policy within the bounds of the rule of law plummeted from 54% to just 28% over the same period. This waning faith in the cabinet extends beyond the prime minister himself. The survey found growing pessimism that the government will achieve its objectives: as of May, seven in ten civil servants did not expect the cabinet to succeed in goals such as reducing social inequality, combating discrimination, cutting CO₂ emissions, or protecting nature in the Netherlands. Skepticism is especially pronounced regarding the housing crisis – the proportion of respondents doubting the government’s housing plans more than doubled (from 35% to 58%) since last year. (The only area where expectations remained roughly steady was national defense, which only a small minority were worried about.)

Interestingly, the anticipated ethical conflicts under the new regime have not materialized to the extent many feared. Last year, before the cabinet took office, 30% of civil servants thought they would be confronted with moral dilemmas more often under the Schoof government. In reality, only 16% now report that they have indeed encountered such moral quandaries in their work. The findings suggest that while Dutch civil servants remain deeply committed to the public good and to carrying out lawful policies, a significant number are prepared to take a stand if political leaders push beyond what these civil servants consider acceptable in a democracy. The full research report, “Morele vragen en activisme” (Moral questions and activism), has been made available via Ipsos Publiek.

Sources:https://www.binnenlandsbestuur.nl/carriere/meer-ambtenaren-trekken-morele-grens
https://www.ipsos-publiek.nl/actueel/een-op-vijf-ambtenaren-merkte-invloed-door-kabinet-schoof/

Research report:
https://206.wpcdnnode.com/ipsos-publiek.nl/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/rapport_morele-vragen-en-activisme_meting-2.pdf

Opinion piece: Civil Servants Must Uphold Continuity and Morality in Government

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