Palinurus
The Living Force
Roundup of recent developments in The Netherlands.
Source: Coronavirus law under fire from lawyers, local authorities and the ombudsman - DutchNews.nl
Source: Dutch research into Covid-19 and anti-malarial drugs is halted - DutchNews.nl
Source: Leiden coronavirus vaccine trial brought forward to July - DutchNews.nl
Similar coverage: Leiden pharmaceutical to start human testing coronavirus vaccine next month
Source: Coronavirus law under fire from lawyers, local authorities and the ombudsman - DutchNews.nl
Corona virus law under fire from lawyers, local authorities and the ombudsman
June 9, 2020
Government plans to anchor the rules [in Dutch] for social distancing and other Covid-19 related legal issues in law have been criticized by lawyers, local authorities and the national ombudsman.
Currently the regulations are based on the government’s emergency powers which can be enacted at times of crisis. But legal experts have criticized the lack of legal basis given the length of time the measures have now been in force, and say it may be possible to challenge fines in court.
The government hopes the new rules will come into effect on July 1, but they still have to be approved by both houses of parliament.
The new rules would make it an offense not to keep a ‘safe distance’ from others on the street. They also allow officials to ban people from certain places and from organising events and from practising certain professions. Ministers would also be allowed to make certain hygiene rules compulsory.
The Dutch bar association said in a reaction to the proposals that the law may conflict with fundamental rights set down in the constitution and that ministers would be given a free hand to take far-reaching measures behind closed doors.
Complaints
The national ombudsman Reinier van Zutphen said [in Dutch] the draft legislation does not make it clear where people should go if the measures conflict with their own needs and interests.
‘What is this law really going to change for citizens?’ he said. ‘Do people understand what considerations the government is making when limiting their rights. And how is the government to be held accountable.’
Local authorities
The local authority association VNG said [in Dutch] that the chain of command between national government, regional safety departments and mayors is too vague in the draft legislation.
‘Local authorities are being given too few options to steer the rules and there is no democratic control at a local level,’ the VNG said. ‘In addition, in the next phase, local authorities should be able to weigh up health, social and economic interests against each other and decide which steps are necessary,’ the association said.
The legislation first has to be looked at by the Council of State advisory body which is expected to report back next week.
Source: Dutch research into Covid-19 and anti-malarial drugs is halted - DutchNews.nl
Dutch research into Covid-19 and anti-malarial drugs is halted
June 10, 2020
Dutch research into the impact of two anti-malarial drugs on Covid-19 patients has been halted because researchers are no longer confident that it has a beneficial effect, broadcaster RTL and the AD said on Wednesday [both links Dutch only].
Some 10 hospitals, including the Utrecht and Maastricht teaching hospitals, were involved in testing the use of chloroquine and the related hydroxy-chloroquine, which started on April 15.
Work was halted two weeks ago after a report in medical journal The Lancet which said that use of the drug had led to more deaths. That report has since been withdrawn, but the Dutch researchers have decided to abandon their project anyway.
In particular, other unpublished British research involving 5,000 patients had shown no difference in the results between patients given the drug and a control group, project leader Andy Hoepelman told the AD.
In addition, there were too few corona virus patients taking part in the Dutch study, which needed at least 1,000, Hoepelman said.
The Dutch study aimed to look at the impact of the drugs on patients who had been admitted to hospital but were not in intensive care, comparing their effects with those on standard treatment.
Source: Leiden coronavirus vaccine trial brought forward to July - DutchNews.nl
Leiden corona virus vaccine trial brought forward to July
June 11, 2020
A vaccine against corona virus which is being developed by pharmaceuticals subsidiary Janssen Biologics in Leiden will be tested on humans as early as July, the company has announced.
The company, which is owned by American multinational Johnson & Johnson, had scheduled the trial phase for September but said positive results had allowed researchers to bring it forward.
The Netherlands, which has pledged to ‘promote and facilitate’ production of thevirus[vaccine] but has not invested in its development, has strict regulations surrounding testing which means that trials will take place in Belgium and the United States.
Some 1,045 healthy adults between 18 and 45 will take part in a randomized double blind study which will give researchers answers as to the safety of the vaccine and its ability to make the body produce antibodies.
The production of the vaccine will take place in Leiden, the United States and possibly Asia, the company said. Despite the lack of testing results, a goal of a billion doses has already been set for 2021.
‘If the vaccine doesn’t work we will have to destroy it. That is the risk we are taking,’ lead researcher at Janssen and UvA virology professor Hanneke Schuitemaker told the AD [in Dutch]. ‘But if it does work we want to be able to give it to the world as quickly as possible.’
However, the paper notes, despite pledges by Janssen that the vaccine will be fairly divided among countries, president Donald Trump, whose government has invested half a billion dollar in the development of the vaccine, may want to lay claim [in Dutch] to the vaccines produced in the US.
Similar coverage: Leiden pharmaceutical to start human testing coronavirus vaccine next month