Judges in The Hague have ruled that the curfew must be lifted immediately because of its impact on personal freedom. The case was brought by anti-coronavirus campaign group Viruswaarheid.

The court ruled that a curfew has such a far-reaching impact on the right to free movement and on privacy that it requires ‘extremely careful decision making’.

However, for the introduction of the curfew, the government used emergency powers legislation which does not require the consent of parliament. The court said that parliament should have been consulted because there was no  ‘special urgency’ – to introduce the curfew when it did.

The curfew from 9pm to 4.30am was introduced in mid January and extended earlier this month until the morning of March 3.

A spokesman for the justice ministry said in an initial reaction that officials are studying the ruling carefully.

More to follow