Explosive advice to the Ministry: Princess Laurentien must completely distance yourself from her own foundation

Princess Laurentien van Oranje must be completely remotely from the Foundation (equal) worthy recovery (SGH), who assists victims in the allowance scandal.

That advise lawyers of NautaDutilh to the Ministry of Finance in a report that on Thursday was shared with the Lower House, in the run -up to a debate on the recovery operation surcharges.

After criticism Laurentien stopped as chairman of SGH last year, but according to the report she is still « intensively involved in decision -making » and is still in informal strings through a statutory construction. According to NautaDutilh, that successful implementation of SGH’s commissioned to help thousands of victims determine their damage.

The legal analysis has the already troubled relationship Between finance and the foundation put under further pressure. Laurentiens right hand and co-founder of SGH Gerd van Atten mentioned the report earlier this week De Telegraaf A « secret » personal attack and said he feels « extremely unsafe ».

In the analysis, which NautaDutilh carried out at the request of the Ministry, the lawyers draw hard conclusions about the way SGH is controlled. According to them, there is a « serious lack of Checks and Balances« . The powers of the founders would be contrary to corporate law, guidelines for good governance and agreements that SGH has made with the ministry. Finance should » discuss this in the short term « with the foundation.

According to SGH, the conclusions of Nauta are incorrect. In response to the public advice published The foundation on Thursday has its own laws of lawyers, by the Lindenbaum office, which states that the foundation is indeed controlled in accordance with the legal requirements. « In principle, SGH can decide for itself how it organizes its organization, and SGH has been established and furnished in accordance with requirements, » writes Lindenbaum.

SGH also published a letter from the Ministry to the Foundation, which shows that State Secretary Sandra Palmen (Surcharges, NSC) had a conversation last Monday about the report with chairman of the Supervisory Board of SGH Gert-Jan Segers, with whom the message about the reinforcement of the Governance « had come hard. According to Palmen it was a « pleasant and constructive conversation, » the letter says.

Compelling voice

The lawyers of NautaDutilh write in their advice that the articles of association give all kinds of formal powers to Princess Laurentien and her right hand of Atten as « founders »: they have « in the vision, course and decision -making a compelling voice ». In addition, they determine the administrative regulations, choose the chairman of the Supervisory Board and also have ties with other directors and supervisors.

This observation is striking, because responsible State Secretary Palmen this month during an interview at Buitenhof About the role of Laurentien, just said that the princess was « at a distance », and « had withdrawn a little further. »

According to the advisory report, the Princess and Van Atten in practice have an « important, if not decisive » influence on decisions of the foundation, while they do not bear (legal) responsibility for that. According to NautaDutilh, they fall « completely outside the framework of laws and regulations. » The only way to put an end to that, Nauta writes, is « completely scrapping the founders as a for -turn. » There, the lawyers would « not have an informal say in its place ».

The analysis of NautaDutilh also raises fundamental questions about the ministerial responsibility for Laurentien, who is a member of the Royal House. This makes Prime Minister Dick Schoof responsible for this construction, who, according to lawyers, is legally and politically risky. Nautadutilh emphasizes in the Laurentiens special position report « , which means that it has a certain authority that others do not have. »

Honest business

The legal advisers also write that SGH does not meet the requirements of ‘honest business operations’. « There is no regulation to avoid risks of conflicts of interest or otherwise unlawful acts among the founders (…) and there is no person who monitors this. »

According to the Code for Good Governance that SGH must comply with the State on the basis of its contract, « no agreements may be concluded with (legal) persons with a close involvement of the directors. » One of Laurentiens foundations provides for a fee Introduction sessions for SGH employees. This foundation also charges office costs at SGH. Van Atten works as a legal adviser for SGH.

Mega job

Last year, the Ministry of Finance commissioned SGH to determine the financial compensation for twenty thousand allowances victims – a mega job worth nearly 100 million euros. The foundation turned out initially unable to carry out this ‘upscaling’, according to research from NRC In October.

The latest figures show little improvement. In the meantime, according to its own budget, SGH should help hundreds of allowances parents every week. That was 21 last week. As a result, there is a risk that victims also have to wait a long time with the foundation that is explicitly intended to accelerate the recovery operation.

Nevertheless, the ministry negotiates SGH about further expansion of the assignmentuntil possibly all 41,000 victims. This is done on the advice of a committee led by former MP Chris van Dam, who did two comments: “The implementation requires that SGH scores firmly and that their governance is in order. We think they are able to do this. « 

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