Tag Archives: Dutch government
How 4 Words Caused a Political Crisis in the Netherlands Posted by Sten on Apr 5, 2021
The past two weeks, the Netherlands was in de ban van (under the spell) of the ominous words “Positie Omtzigt, functie elders” (position Omtzigt, job elsewhere). Who is Omtzigt, where do these words come from and what does this all mean? Here’s how these four words caused a political crisis in the Netherlands. Who are the verkenners? Before we…
Why Did the Dutch Government Suddenly Decide to Leave? Posted by Sten on Jan 18, 2021
Last Friday, the Dutch regering decided that it was time to opstappen (resign). Minister-president (Prime Minister) Mark Rutte offered the ontslag (resignation) of his entire kabinet (cabinet) to the koning (king). The toeslagenaffaire was the big cause of the aftreding (resignation). What happened? And why now? And what does this mean for Nederland? The kindertoeslagenaffaire It’s a long word, but with a heavy load. The kindertoeslagenaffaire (child welfare fraud scandal)…
Knalplanga! Posted by Sten on Jul 13, 2020
July 4th was a little more than a week ago. Happy late 4th of July, dear Americans! It’s a day with parties, events and fireworks – and during the pandemic mostly the latter. But fireworks lead to injuries each year, even deaths. In the Netherlands, we have such issues too. Not in July, but in…
Corona in Understandable (Dutch) Language Posted by Karoly Molina on May 20, 2020
Since the corona crisis began in the Netherlands, the Dutch government has made available so much information, however, this isn’t always done in simple language. This creates a problem for the 2.5 million people in the Netherlands who have low reading, writing and counting skills. Fortunately, the Stichting Lezen en Schrijven is doing something to…
Why Dutch PM Rutte’s Address Was Historical Posted by Sten on Mar 17, 2020
The coronavirus is spreading across the world fast. Maandagavond (Monday evening) at 7 pm, minister-president (prime minister) Mark Rutte addressed the Dutch people from the Torentje (little tower), which is the office of the Dutch premier (prime minister). He addressed zorgen (concerns) about the virus and what the Dutch overheid (government) is considering. Here’s what he said and why it was…
Coronavirus: The Dutch Response Posted by Sten on Mar 10, 2020
Het coronavirus (the coronavirus) has reached Europe, including the Netherlands. While landen (countries) like Italy have decided that a landelijke quarantaine (country-wide quarantine) is the right way to contain the virus, what do the Dutch do? And how do they react? Let’s have a look, while also learning some Dutch! The Government’s Advice So far, the…
What does Brexit mean for the Netherlands? Posted by Karoly Molina on Mar 6, 2019
March is here and there is only one thing in the EU’s mind: Brexit! March 29th is the official day for the UK to leave the EU and everything in the news indicates that it will be a hard Brexit. The EU and the UK recently came up with an exit deal, but the British…