THE HAGUE, 18/07/07 - Public confidence in jurisprudence in the Netherlands weakened sharply between 1990 and 1999, according to Social and Cultural Planning Bureau (SCP) data. Nonetheless, SCP declined to acknowledge this decline in its report published yesterday.

In 1999, about 5 percent of the population were very confident in the Dutch legal system and about 43 percent, fairly confident (together, 48 percent). In 1990, 10 percent were still very confident and 53 percent fairly confident (63 percent together). The SCP however draws the remarkable conclusion that it is not possible to speak just like that of eroded confidence.

The SCP explains that between 1997 and 2006, other research shows that confidence in jurisprudence fluctuated sharply. "If we had measured confidence a few months earlier or later in 1990 or 1999, we could have shown remarkable stability instead of a substantial decline from 63 to 48 percent." This is because confidence was at 56 percent at a certain moment in 1990 and at 55 percent at a certain point in 1999, according to SCP. The researchers do acknowledge that "this combination of maximal deviations may seem somewhat extreme."

The Council for Jurisprudence (RvR) commissioned the research. Based on the question 'are you more inclined to have confidence or no confidence' in jurisprudence, the confidence score perked up to 61 percent in autumn 2006. In this separate study, all kinds of public bodies were rated. Political parties (38 percent), the EU (45 percent), the Dutch government (49 percent), the church (49 percent) and the Lower House (54 percent) had the lowest ratings. The army (75 percent), the police (72 percent) and radio services (72 percent) scored best, with the writing press just above television (62 percent) at 64 percent. The UN (59 percent) scored higher than the EU.

SCP said that with the score of 61 percent, confidence in jurisprudence in the Netherlands is only surpassed in Europe by Denmark (81 percent), Finland (76 percent) and Austria (74 percent). Lithuania (29 percent) and Poland (23 percent) come last. France and Belgium only score 40 percent and the UK and Spain, 49 percent.