[LeatherTrumpet]

[arista]

Originally Posted by Alf

Is Geert Wilders gonna win?

Alf
He is Extreme


You must be Joking?

[Nicky91]

Originally Posted by arista

Alf
He is Extreme


You must be Joking?

there is worse extreme here


Thierry Baudet, thankfully he is no longer welcome now in any parliament debates (someone else from FvD who now takes his place)

at least Wilders know when to stay calm, Baudet got kicked out several times because of his temper, and rage issues

[Nicky91]

https://nltimes.nl/2021/12/01/source...rmed-christmas

new cabinet will not be formed by christmas what a complete mess it is here

The parties at the formation table do not expect to present a new Cabinet at the Noordeinde Palace before Christmas. Involved sources confirmed this after a report by AD. There is still hope among the negotiating parties to be able to present a coalition agreement before then.

When the VVD, D66, CDA, and ChristenUnie started negotiating the continuation of the current coalition two months ago, they still hoped that they would be done before Sinterklaas. But that hope now seems to have vanished. VVD leader Mark Rutte acknowledged at a party conference on Saturday that the estimate was too optimistic.

Because a substantive agreement is not yet in sight, the appointment of a Cabinet will also take longer, insiders say. Informateur Johan Remkes previously noted that the composition of the new government team would only start after the four parties' government program has been discussed with the lower house of Dutch parliament.

Senior officials from various Ministries warned in AD against presenting a new team at the end of the year. After almost two years of the coronavirus crisis, many officials are exhausted and ready for rest, the newspaper wrote.

[Nicky91]

https://nltimes.nl/2021/12/11/coalit...ontinue-monday

Party leaders of the VVD, D66, CDA and ChristenUnie did not reach a coalition agreement Friday evening. "We are almost there," CDA leader Wopke Hoekstra said Friday after hours of consultation. The expectation is that the party leaders will have reached an agreement by Wednesday.

"We will continue for a while," D66 leader Sigrid Kaag said. Leader of the ChristernUnie Gert-Jan Segers said the parties will continue talks on Monday morning, "We are nearing the end."

VVD, D66, CDA and ChristenUnie will not consult further this weekend because of other obligations. Hoekstra has a congress of his party on Saturday. According to Segers, the party leaders will take a day off on Sunday.

The first documents will be submitted to the political parties early next week, after which the coalition agreement can be discussed in a debate in the Tweede Kamer. According to insiders, the coalition agreement may be presented on Wednesday. Next week, Prime Minister and VVD leader Mark Rutte will have a busy week. On Tuesday, he will consult with experts about the coronavirus situation and on Thursday, he has to go to Brussels for an EU summit. As a result, the options for presenting and discussing the agreement with the Tweede Kamer are limited.

The launch of the fourth Rutte Cabinet has been the longest Cabinet formation in Dutch history. It has been more than 38 since elections were held.

Many plans of the new Cabinet have been leaked to the media, such as extra investment in education and childcare for the people with the lowest income will become free

[arista]

[New cabinet will not be formed by christmas what a complete mess it is here]


Yes Nicky
blame Covid-19

[Nicky91]

Originally Posted by arista

[New cabinet will not be formed by christmas what a complete mess it is here]


Yes Nicky
blame Covid-19

when the new cabinet is formed, it is very likely we get a new Health MP, Ernst Kuipers is rumoured to replace Hugo de Jonge

which would be a good move, since he is one who is on frontline of the critical care, and ICU's

[Nicky91]

https://nltimes.nl/2021/12/14/coalit...ty-leaders-say

coalition agreement, finally

The parties in the Cabinet formation process managed to write "a thinner coalition agreement" than four years ago, said ChristenUnie leader Gert-Jan Segers. According to him, they made less detailed agreements. That offers more room for the lower house of the Dutch parliament. The 2017 coalition agreement had about 70 pages.

D66 leader Sigrid Kaag called the negotiation results "nice and balanced." She said she would present it "with pleasure and hope" to her party members. The parliamentary factions of the four parties will discuss the agreements on Tuesday.

VVD leader Mark Rutte spoke of "a good agreement" but emphasized that everything stands or falls with the implementation. His CDA colleague Wopke Hoekstra is happy that the negotiations are finally done. "It took a long time, and it sometimes had something of a pincers release," he said. Hoekstra also noted that he was satisfied with the result.

The parties always said that they were striving for a coalition agreement in broad terms. That was not entirely successful, according to informateur Wouter Koolmees (D66). "Some more agreements have been made." He has not yet released more details about the agreement. "We are not there yet. We first have to go to the factions."

After the factions discuss the agreement, the party leaders will again meet on Wednesday morning to discuss possible adjustments proposed. The agreement will be presented later that morning. Then the informateurs will also give more explanation.

The agreement will likely be discussed in parliament on Thursday. After the debate, Rutte can take over as an informateur. He will then meet with the future ministers. The new Cabinet will be sworn in sometime in the second week of January, possibly on January 10.

The coalition agreement was done 217 days after the parliamentary election in March.

[Nicky91]

https://nltimes.nl/2021/12/15/coalit...u500m-tax-cuts

The four parties involved in drafting a new coalition agreement want to allocate 35 billion euros to address climate issues in the Netherlands over the next ten years, though it will also allow for more nuclear power plants to be built. The deal also calls for three billion euros in tax cuts, especially to help those households with a low- or mid-level income, a 7.5 percent increase in the minimum wage, a massive increase in childcare compensation for families, and the return of the study grant system which was controversially eliminated several years ago.

The coalition agreement between the VVD, D66, CDA, and ChristenUnie was spelled out in a 50-page document presented to Members of Parliament on Wednesday. The agreement was more comprehensive than expected but will still require some details to be ironed out as the likely fourth Cabinet of Prime Minister Mark Rutte advances towards the next scheduled general election in 2025.

The four-year plan gives the Netherlands permission to allow government debt to exceed the European standard of 60 percent of gross domestic product, according to an appendix to the agreement. The EMU debt will gradually increase during the next Cabinet's term to 60.4 percent of GDP in 2025 as the coalition wants to make expensive investments moving forward.

Cabinet formation leader Johan Remkes said that the run-up to the formal negotiations between the four parties took an "excessively long" period of time. He called for a "solid evaluation" to determine why the record-long formation process lasted as long as it did. "Once the dust has settled," he said, an investigation into how this could have happened will be needed. Tweede Kamer chair Vera Bergkamp agreed, and promised the process would be evaluated in full.

"This is an important moment," Remkes said at a press conference introducing the agreement. The country desperately needs a regular government, and not a caretaker Cabinet, in order to affect real policy in several areas.

€35 billion for climate, energy transition
The new Cabinet is pledging to allocate 35 billion euros for climate measures over the next ten years. That money will be made available through a new fund for climate and energy transition issues. The money is intended for the construction of heat, hydrogen, and electricity networks. It also will result in spending more money on making buildings and the transportation sector more sustainable. The extra amount will be on top of the SDE++ subsidy, an existing subsidy scheme for sustainable energy.

The coalition agreement also mentions cutting red tape to increase the speed that projects are completed because major energy infrastructure projects are progressing too slowly. The new Cabinet wants to make progress by using an approach similar to that of the Crisis and Recovery Act in this type of procedure. It is intended to accelerate infrastructure projects.

The coalition partners said they would work with educational institutions, governments, and social partners to train enough people to ensure there are enough professionals to carry out the infrastructure tasks needed to achieve the climate goals. Retraining will also be available when necessary.

Nuclear power investments also planned
The new Cabinet wants to build two new nuclear power plants in the Netherlands. The preparations for the construction should start in the coming years. The existing nuclear power plant in Borssele will initially remain open longer but without losing sight of safety. According to the parties, nuclear energy can complement solar and wind energy and geothermal energy. The power stations can also be used for the production of hydrogen. By installing nuclear power stations, the Netherlands will also become less dependent on gas imports in terms of energy.

The new government will assist parties wishing to bid for the realization of the nuclear power station. Where the rules allow, this will also mean financial support. The signatories of the agreement also promise that a safe solution will be found for the storage of nuclear waste.

Road pricing, also for electric cars, will start by 2030
The new Cabinet wants road pricing to be introduced in due course. The coalition agreement noted that the Cabinet wants to reduce emissions, and road pricing can contribute to this. The introduction of road pricing by 2030 does not automatically mean that only polluters will pay.

Under the agreement, both the users of electric cars and cars with engines running will pay for road use. In the upcoming Cabinet term, the path will be paved for the new system in which the motor vehicle tax rate is dependent on the number of kilometers driven annually.

According to the authors, the levy will not be bound by time and place. Paying according to use will replace toll routes that still exist when the system is implemented, such as the Westerscheldetunnel, the Kiltunnel and the planned A15 extension.

Tax cuts for individuals & minimum wage bump
The four parties also said they want to reduce the burden on households by three billion euros. They want the effective cost of living to be reduced, especially for low and middle income households, workers and families. The Social and Cultural Planning Office said earlier that 28 percent of the population s financially vulnerable, This is one of the proposals meant to bridge that gap.

The new Cabinet will invest 500 million euros annually in reforming the labor market. The coalition deal has adopted a series of recommendations from the Borstlap committee, which warned that the prosperity of the Dutch State is at risk if the country does not implement reforms. The political parties also said they aim to reduce the difference between flexible and permanent contracts. According to the agreement, the government wants to intervene in the tax and benefits system, by reducing benefits and simplifying the tax system.

Additionally, they plan to raise the minimum wage gradually by 7.5 percent. The minimum hourly wage will be based on a 36-hour work week with reforms meant to reduce trapping people in poverty.

An additional 300 million euros will be set aside annually to allow small and midsized businesses to continue to pay wages in the event of illness. The self-employed tax deduction will still be reduced by 650 euros annually through 2030. To compensate for this, self-employed people will be able to benefit from the increase in the general worker’s tax credit.

Childcare costs almost fully compensated
The new coalition also wants to increase the reimbursement for childcare step-by-step up to 95 percent of the costs. “Parents will only pay a small personal contribution,” the agreement stated.

This concerns childcare for working parents, which will no longer be paid in the form of benefits, but will be paid directly to childcare institutions. That way, parents are no longer faced with repaying large amounts to the tax office when corrections are made.

There was much to be done about the childcare benefits system, which involves large amounts. After the tax benefits scandal, almost all politicians wanted to get rid of the system.

Study grants returning
The basic study grant will return for all students, the coalition parties wrote in their agreement. There will also be an "income-dependent supplementary grant." How high these grants will be is not yet clear. Students who had to borrow under the loan system will receive compensation. They'll get a discount on their student debt or a "study voucher." The coalition is allocating a total of 1 billion euros extra for this.

The new coalition will not amend Article 23 of the constitution to adjust the freedom of education. This was a sensitive issue in the formation. Christian parties CDA and ChristenUnie did not want to change Article 23. The D66 thought about tightening it up. The article of law contains guarantees for special education, which also includes Christian schools. The discussion about the article flared up after reformed schools refused students because of their sexual orientation. The parties wrote that schools may not refuse students based on ethnicity, sexuality, sexual orientation, or marital status.

The coalition parties will close the pay gap between primary and secondary education. Primary school teachers will therefore earn a lot more. The parties also strive for a collective labor agreement for teachers and administrators in foundation education. The parties want to reduce the workload in schools. They make money available for smaller classes or more teachers and supervisors in a class.

New housing target increased by 25%
The coalition parties want to abolish the landlord levy, which the housing corporations vehemently despise. Instead of this tax which corporations pay annually, binding agreements must be made with the corporations about constructing flexible housing, affordable rental housing, renovation, and sustainability.

The coalition also wants to build more homes, about 100,000 per year. In recent years, the target was 75,000

Health insurance deductible remains, but more flexible
The new Cabinet wants to keep the healthcare deductible frozen at 385 euros. It does want to adjust the deductible system so that people no longer have to pay the entire cost after a singular expensive treatment. Instead, there will be a system with a "payment per treatment up to a maximum of 385 euros."

Healthcare salaries
The new coalition hopes to make working in healthcare more attractive by providing "more say, an approach to regulatory pressure, good (additional) training and better cooperation with formal and informal care providers." Higher salaries for healthcare staff, something that part of the Tweede Kamer has wanted for some time, was not mentioned.

Wages have already been increased, it was noted. The institutions and companies where care providers work are expected to be good employers, with training opportunities and an irregularity allowance. Furthermore, according to the coalition, "working more hours in healthcare should pay off."

Defense
The coalition wants to allocate an extra 3 billion euros per year for Defense. According to the Ministry, at least 4 billion euros extra was needed to get the armed forces in order during the coming Cabinet term. "We are putting the foundations in order," the VVD, D66, CDA, and ChristenUnie said in their coalition agreement. The new Cabinet will make investments in personnel and equipment. In particular, the IT Capacity and intelligence work will be strengthened.

The Defense organization will also divest "superfluous real estate." The armed forces have a considerable backlog when it comes to property maintenance.

[Nicky91]

https://www.dutchnews.nl/news/2022/0...-is-finalised/

The last few ministerial posts in the next Dutch government were confirmed on Sunday, completing the line-up of ministers and junior ministers in Mark Rutte’s fourth administration

In total, there are 29 ministers and junior ministers, of whom 14 are women – a first in Dutch political history. Among the new faces are Almere mayor Franc Weerwind, who is the minister for legal protection, and Ernst Kuipers, head of the Dutch acute hospital care association, who became a familiar face on television during the coronavirus pandemic.

As expected, Hugo de Jonge is going to housing, where he will be charged with dealing with the shortage of affordable homes in the Netherlands. Wopke Hoekstra, the outgoing finance minister, takes over at foreign affairs.

The complete line up

Prime minister Mark Rutte (VVD)

Finance Minister of Finance: Sigrid Kaag (D66)
Junior minister for tax: Marnix van Rij (CDA)
Junior minister for benefits and customs: Aukje de Vries (VVD)

Foreign affairs Minister of foreign affairs: Wopke Hoekstra (CDA)
Minister for foreign trade and development aid: Liesje Schreinemacher (VVD)

Justice and security Minister of justice and security: Dilan Yesilgöz (VVD)
Minister for legal protection: Franc Weerwind (D66)
Junior minister for asylum and immigration: Eric van der Burg (VVD)

Home affairs Minister of home and kingdom affairs: Hanke Bruins Slot (CDA)
Minister for housing: Hugo de Jonge (CDA)
Junior minister for kingdom affairs and digitalization: Alexandra van Huffelen (D66)


Education, culture and science Minister of education, culture and science: Robbert Dijkgraaf (D66)
Minister for schools: Dennis Wiersma (VVD)
Junior minister of culture and media issues: Gunay Uslu (D66)

Defence Minister of defence: Kajsa Ollongren (D66)
Junior minister of defence: Christophe van der Maat (VVD)

Infrastructure and waterways
Minister of infrastructure and waterways: Mark Harbers (VVD)
Junior minister of infrastructure and waterways: Vivianne Heijnen (CDA)

Economic affairs and climate
Minister of economic affairs and climate: Micky Adriaansens (VVD)
Minister for climate and energy: Rob Jetten (D66)
Junior minister of mines (the Groningen gas problem): Hans Vijlbrief (D66)


Agriculture and nature
Minister of agriculture, nature and food quality: Henk Staghouwer (CU)
Minister for nature and nitrogen issues: Christianne van der Wal (VVD)

Social affairs and employment
Minister of social affairs and employment: Karien van Gennip (CDA)
Minister for poverty strategy, participation and pensions: Carola Schouten (CU)

Health, welfare and sport
Minister of health, welfare and sport: Ernst Kuipers (D66)
Minister for long term care and sport: Conny Helder (VVD)
Junior minister for youth and prevention: Maarten van Ooijen (CU)

Women take 14 of 29 jobs

[Nicky91]

so this parliament will be Rutte 4


Mark Rutte's 4th term as Prime Minister

[Nicky91]

https://nltimes.nl/2022/01/10/new-du...mation-process

Rutte 4 cabinet will be sworn in today after record long formation process


only Sigrid Kaag won't be there in person but virtually after testing positive for covid

[Nicky91]

Kaag sworn in as new minister of finance via live video link



Royal Decrees signed
King Willem-Alexander signed the Royal Decrees at Noordeinde Palace, which regulate the appointment of ministers. Rutte has also signed the decisions, the so-called contraseign.

Now we have to wait for the official swearing-in of the Rutte IV cabinet by the king. This takes place in the Grote Balzaal on Noordeinde, where all the ministers have just arrived.



coming up the traditional photo moment in front of the palace with the king and new cabinet

[Nicky91]

traditional group photo (socially distanced because of covid pandemic now) of the new cabinet