The cabinet is setting aside €18.5m to pay for school trips to the Binnenhof parliamentary complex in The Hague, the AD reported on Thursday.

The money, double the current spending limit, will cover extra guides and educational material. Transportation, which had been a problem for some schools, will also be included so school children from all over the country can visit.

At the moment some 40% of secondary school children make the trip to watch parliament in action, the AD said.

The trips, which were agreed in the government accord but are not mandatory, are an incentive to learn about ‘the principles of the state of law and the fundamental values of our democracy,’ the paper quotes home affairs minister Kajsa Ollongren as saying. ‘It’s a fun way of learning something that will stand them in good stead for the rest of their lives,’ the minister said.

Plans to have all school children learn the national anthem and take them on an outing to the Rijksmuseum have not been a great succes so far, the AD writes. Schools are still working on including the Wilhelmus in the curriculum and it is up to individual schools to organise the trip to Amsterdam, the paper points out.