Government-opposition dynamics in parliamentary interruptions: the case of the Netherlands

The expanding literature on the relationship between government and opposition in parliamentary politics focuses strongly on parliamentary voting behaviour. This paper contributes to the literature by looking at another aspect of parliamentary behaviour: interruptions in parliamentary speeches. Interruptions are a feature of debates in many parliaments and in the case of the Netherlands they have become the main way to exchange arguments. By studying the patterns of interruptions (frequency, who interrupts whom) as well as the sentiment of interruptions, this offers a supplementary perspective on patterns of parliamentary behaviour, especially between government and opposition. This is particularly interesting from the perspective of studying oppositional behaviour within the government coalition and the relationship between opposition parties. This enriches our understanding of government-opposition dynamics and contributes to the debate on the blurring of opposition. The paper focuses on the case of the Netherlands between 1946 and 2021.