Formation of Dutch government advances as far-right Wilders admits he can’t be PM

Jon Henley | The Guardian — Thu, 14 Mar 2024 22:02:54 +0000

Four parties have agreed to pursue ‘extra-parliamentary’ cabinet, says mediator overseeing tense coalition talks

Dutch coalition talks will move on from exploratory discussions to more concrete negotiations aimed at forming a largely technocratic government, after the far-right leader Geert Wilders accepted he could not be prime minister.

Four months after Wilders’ anti-Islam Freedom party (PVV) became the largest in parliament, Kim Putters, the former socialist senator overseeing the talks, said they would continue based on a cabinet of political veterans and outside experts.

In a keenly awaited report released on Thursday, Putters said the four parties involved – PVV, the liberal-conservative VVD, the agrarian BBB and the centre-right newcomer NSC – had agreed to pursue an “extra-parliamentary” government.

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Source: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/14/formation-dutch-government-advances-far-right-wilders-admits-cant-be-pm

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Dutch government resigns over child welfare fraud scandal

Rosanne Roobeek, James Frater and Niamh Kennedy, CNN — Tue, 26 Jan 2021 02:54:57 +0000

Rutte has been in power since 2010.

(CNN) The Dutch government has resigned amid a scandal that saw thousands of families wrongly accused of child welfare fraud.

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte announced the Cabinet’s resignation in an address Friday, saying that responsibility for the scandal “ultimately rests with the incumbent Cabinet and nowhere else.”

Under the scandal, around 10,000 families in the Netherlands were told to repay tens of thousands of euros of subsidies after being wrongly accused of child welfare fraud.

Rutte made his speech in the aftermath of the publication of a report by the Parliamentary Interrogation Committee on Childcare Allowance, which he called “very tough, but fair.”

“On all levels throughout the political-administrative-legal system, mistakes have been made that have resulted in great injustice to thousands of parents,” he remarked.

The Dutch premier was clear that financial compensation for the affected parents is the “the first thing that needs to be properly arranged.”

“We will continue to work on quick compensation and the improvements needed for the future.”

Elections for a new government will take place in mid-March he announced, saying that until then, the current administration will stay on and “can be expected to do what is necessary in the national interest.”

Rutte has been in power for over a decade, taking charge in October 2010. If his party wins the election in two months, he will be able to form a new administration.

Addressing the Dutch people, Rutte said “our fight against the coronavirus continues.”

Source: https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/15/europe/netherlands-government-resigns-scandal-intl/index.html

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The post Dutch government resigns over child welfare fraud scandal first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

Dutch government - Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association

Formation of Dutch government advances as far-right Wilders admits he can’t be PM

Dutch government resigns over child welfare fraud scandal