What Constitutes a Win?

With Dutch Voters going to the Polls today, I thought you might like to know the rules of the game.

51% No / 49% Yes = a win for the Government.

Confused? Well you see the referendum is not binding, so those in power are free to interpret the result. What the Government has said publicly is that a 30% Turnout and a 55% anti vote will be enough to convince them. It’s a good thing that 59% plan to vote against. For those thinking that this is unfair, the government has actually softened its position:

The CDA (Governing Party) initially said 60 percent needed to vote no for it accept the public's decision.

With commentators saying that voters use referendums to kick the political elite, this seems a strategy designed to backfire. I wonder if the vote had been binding, whether the voters would have been more inclined to listen to what they were told?