The Senate debated on Tuesday, September 30, about a bill concerning the introduction of the citizen service number (BSN) in Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba (BES); the Act on the introduction of BSN and provisions for digital government BES. During the debate with outgoing Secretary of State Van Marum (Recovery Groningen, Internal Affairs, and Kingdom Relations), it became clear that most factions participating in the debate were in favor of the introduction of the BSN. However, there were still questions about the implementation of the bill, risks of fraud and abuse, and attention for people who are less digitally skilled. After the debate, the bill was adopted without a vote. The PVV faction requested a note. This is comparable to a dissenting vote.
With this bill, a citizen service number (BSN) is introduced for all registered residents of Caribbean Netherlands. Furthermore, Caribbean government bodies are authorized to process this number. In this way, citizens can securely and reliably log in to digital services of the government. According to the outgoing government, the aim of this bill is to bring the digital services of the government in Caribbean Netherlands to a level comparable to that in continental Netherlands.
PVV senator Van Hattem was critical of the proposed measures to combat fraud with the BSN. According to him, the Secretary of State has not yet sufficiently demonstrated how fraud will be prevented. He stated that the risk of fraud and abuse due to frequent copying of the ID card containing the BSN remains. Van Hattem also wanted to know what extra efforts are being made to comply with privacy regulations and whether there is sufficient and adequate capacity available at the Personal Data Protection Supervisory Committee BES for this.
According to senator Lievense (BBB), the bill will truly make a difference for the residents of the BES islands. He sees significant improvements for legal certainty and privacy, for better and faster services, and for equality within the Kingdom. However, he also pointed out that digitization brings risks. Identity fraud is always lurking and must be prevented. Finally, he asked the Secretary of State to consider people who are less digitally skilled by ensuring accessible help and explanations in all languages of the Kingdom. Digitization must never lead to exclusion, according to Lievense.
Volt senator Hartog also spoke on behalf of the factions of SP, D66, ChristenUnie, PvdD, OPNL, and GroenLinks-PvdA. They are pleased that the BSN is coming to the islands, but, as Hartog asked, why has this taken so long? Since 2010, the residents of the islands have been on an equal footing with the rest of the Netherlands. He also asked whether status holders on the islands would be entitled to a BSN after six months, just like in the Netherlands. How is the introduction of the digital wallet in the EU coordinated with the islands, Hartog asked in conclusion.
Outgoing Secretary of State Van Marum stated that the special position of the BES islands requires visibility, care, and structural attention. The aim is to further improve digital services. This will first be done by gradually implementing digitization. All residents will receive a BSN, after which the first government organizations can transition to BSN and DigiD. Secondly, by prioritizing security. No new systems will be introduced; the connections in existing systems will be adjusted. Information security and risk prevention will be prioritized. Finally, all information will be multilingual and accessible to reach as many people as possible. Furthermore, the cabinet is focused on increasing digital skills.
