Dutch News

Former health minister Hugo de Jonge tried to extricate himself from the face mask scandal this week by defending a deal that he officially had nothing to do with. Another former minister, Stef Blok, is deployed to speed up the confiscation of Russian assets as the number of Ukrainian refugees reaches 22,000. Soaring fuel prices drive inflation up to its highest level in 1976, while economic uncertainty puts the brakes on the housing market. In football news, Ajax coach Erik ten Hag looks to be packing his bags for Manchester as Ronald Koeman is confirmed as the successor to Louis van Gaal as Oranje coach. And a new breed of organised criminal makes life sour for Noord-Brabant farmers.

*Apology: unfortunately this week's recording was disturbed by occasional drilling noises. We have passed the workman's details on to Maurice de Hond.* Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy was the toast of Brielle this week as he commemorated the 450th anniversary of the town's liberation from Spain. In his address to the Tweede Kamer he also called on the Dutch to send more weapons, stop buying Russian gas and lift the handbrake on his country's wish to join the EU. Zwolle is in shock after a double fatal shooting in McDonald's while families ate dinner. The long-running campaign to create a legal supply chain for cannabis cafes hits the buffers again because of a shortage of growers. Oranje warm up for the World Cup by beating Denmark in Christian Eriksen's first international match since his cardiac arrest. And we reveal which lucky patron is receiving Paul's historic red pencil. - Peregrine falcon webcam: https://www.vogelbescherming.nl/beleefdelente/slechtvalk - Belgian parliamants

Disgrace and disappointment dominate a week in which Hugo de Jonge again dodged questions about his part in a deal to buy substandard face masks that made three enterprising young lobbyists €20 million richer. His successor as health minister, Ernst Kuipers, warned that the pandemic isn't over but we're going to remove all the restrictions anyway. A book that accused a Jewish notary of betraying Anne Frank's family is withdrawn from sale after an independent report dismantles its central claims. The war in Ukraine prompts a startling change of tone in how Dutch politicians talk about refugees, which doesn't go unnoticed. And there's plenty of sporting ophef as Louis van Gaal lashes out against FIFA and disgraced football director Marc Overmars is welcomed with open arms and overt amnesia in Antwerp.

We do our best to help you digest the alphabet soup that is the local election results, including the sad news that Jesus will not be setting Rotterdam's municipal tax rates for the next four years. The flu season kicks off just as the last coronavirus restrictions are lifted and Ernst Kuipers puts his faith in the common sense of the Dutch people. The Netherlands is struggling to meet its climate change targets or find an estimated €90 bn of assets held by sanctioned Russians. And Ajax extend a remarkable home record in Europe as they lose 1-0 to Benfica.

As war continues to rage in Ukraine, we focus this week on a campaign closer to home: the municipal elections on March 16. There's rage in The Hague too as foreign affairs minister Sigrid Kaag goes AWOL in faraway Maastricht. The government brings in measures to relieve the effect of the war on living costs, but not until July. Luckily it's wasting no time in taking down the coronavirus restrictions just as infections crank up in the wake of Carnaval. And we speak to Groningen-based journalist Andrii Degeler, who returned to his native Kharkhiv just as the Russian invasion began.

A massive upheaval of the European postwar order and the invasion of a sovereign state puts a damper on the Netherlands' coronavirus "freedom day". Politicians roundly condemn Vladimir Putin's incursion in Ukraine, but only after Mark Rutte makes time to chat about his car on a TV talk show. Three storms caused record amounts of damage to cars and buildings and left four people dead. A suspiciously named brand of gin triggers 'No Go' letters from Yoko Ono and an even more suspicious crowdfunding campaign. And we look back to the distant days of last week when the Dutch scooped a sackload of skating medals at the Winter Olympics. Terrible Maps map: https://twitter.com/TerribleMaps/status/1495793175054753792

Freedom Day is almost here, and what finer way to celebrate than by reviving the biggest superspreading events of the last two years: Carnaval in Brabant and reopening nightclubs? Confusion abounds at political party Volt as one of its MPs is suspended over allegations of inappropriate behaviour shortly after being the target of online abuse. Ireen Wüst brings down the curtain on her illustrious skating career as the Dutch team scoop up medals in Beijing. Storm Eunice brings chaos to the roads and rails, but at least traffic is flowing freely on a controversial bridge for squirrels in The Hague. And another EU-related storm – Brexit – has blown thousands of jobs across the North Sea, but not in the direction the Brexiteers were hoping for.

Following the cancellation of TV talent show The Voice, football club Ajax and the Dutch parliament are the latest institutions to face accusations of sexual harassment. The Dutch government brings forward plans to relax the pandemic measures and sketched out its strategy for 'living with the virus'. Energy prices drive inflation up to its highest level in 40 years, but are wages keeping pace? Also, we explain why Big Brother is watching you on discount store cameras and how a suspiciously named Swede caused ophef in the Dutch speed skating camp.

We sift through the wreckage of a week when Storm Corrie battered the coastline, a German cargo ship smashed up a wind farm and the cold case team investigating the betrayal of Anne Frank ran into strong headwinds. The government trashed its plans for a 2G coronavirus pass just as half a million vaccine certificates are destined for the shredder. And billionaire Jeff Bezos sparked uproar with plans to dismantle a Rotterdam landmark to make way his gargantuan new yacht. Further afield, the Dutch skating team sharpens its blades for the Winter Olympics in China and Henk Krol eyes up a transfer to pensioners' paradise Spain.

The Netherlands went into Schrödinger's Lockdown this week, as venues everywhere opened up until 10pm while their owners fumed about staying closed. A shadowy transaction at the Binnenhof caught the eye of Twitter observers, while in the debating chamber Ernst Kuipers raised eyebrows with his claims about 3G passes. Dubious claims also put paid to the career of a VVD political adviser after Geert Wilders dug up her well documented history as a member of a terrorist group. In other discrimination news, the tax office is found to have passed its blacklists of dual nationals around government departments like pepernoten at Sinterklaas. And Amsterdam's VU university is shocked to find that the Chinese government might have had an ulterior motive in sponsoring its human rights centre.

Any hopes of a fresh start to 2022 are well and truly cancelled. RTL pulls the plug on its most successful TV show, the Voice of Holland, as allegations emerge of widespread sexual abuse. The first parliamentary debate of the new cabinet term begins with angry exchanges as MPs round on Geert Wilders for his language towards Muslims and women. Budget institute Nibud calculates that everyone will be poorer this year, but the cabinet still wants to break the link between minimum wages and pensions. All this and record coronavirus infections too. Meanwhile, a cold case team claims to have solved one of the biggest mysteries of the Second World War: who told the Nazis where Anne Frank's family were hiding? #Netherlands #DutchNews #DN #Dutch #TheNetherlands #News #DutchPolitics #DutchCurrentEvents #Holland

A year after Mark Rutte's four-party coalition resigned in disgrace, a new cabinet of four parties, led by Mark Rutte, promises a fresh start and a "new elan". Within days two ministers have tested positive for coronavirus and the justice minister is under fire for not bothering to enforce the rules. Departing economic affairs minister Stef Blok drops a stink bomb in Groningen on his way out, revealing that gas production in the earthquake-ridden province will have to double. New housing minister Hugo de Jonge will need all his skills and more to tackle the shortage of affordable homes. And we reveal which minor ruckus has won the coveted title of Ophef of the Year 2021. Rita Verdonk's campaign video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXQAYlCoYDE&t=2s

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSd1XwbqQfUb_hZWGc5b_D0w9kd8l3uOXjD473u7A9EA8THK7Q/viewform

Rejoice this Yuletide, for a cabinet is born! Or is it four more years of being led by the same donkeys? In a special edition of the DutchNews podcast, we pick over Rutte IV's frugality-busting coalition deal. Can the government regain people's trust in the wake of the childcare benefits scandal and the Groningen earthquakes? What will the climate change plans mean for households? Can they really find €5 billion in healthcare savings? And who will benefit most from the €3 billion of tax cuts?

Eleven months, eight resignations and more than 8,000 coronavirus deaths since the Dutch government resigned, a new cabinet looks set to take office just in time for the Christmas recess. Schools will not be finishing early for the holidays, however, despite the threat of the Omicron variant and the advice of the Outbreak Management Team. The booster campaign picks up speed as the EU decides that covid passports will expire after 9 months for people who have only had two jabs. Princess Amalia takes up her seat on the Raad van State and plants a tree on her first royal duty. And the Formula One season heads for a dramatic climax, or possibly a dramatic Max crash.

Coronavirus cases are flying high but the big news this week was about two quarantining tourists who were barred from flying home and forced to spend the night in a stinking toilet in Groningen. Hugo de Jonge promises to give everyone over 60 a booster jab by Christmas as the cabinet comes under fire again for its sluggish vaccination programme. The coalition talks look to be creeping towards a conclusion as speculation begins about the ministerial merry-go-round. And completing a week of slow news, the major Dutch cities call for urban speed limits to be reduced to 30 km/h.

While shoppers hunt for a Black Friday bargain, the Dutch government faces a Code Black scenario in hospitals as coronavirus infections continue to spread. Unrest boils again in Dutch cities as bars are forced to shut early and stricter rules are mooted for unvaccinated people. The cabinet comes in for criticism for its mixed messages, ineffective measures and late start to the booster vaccine campaign. If all else fails for Hugo de Jonge, there's good money to be made from busking on Sunday mornings, according to researchers from Tilburg university. Dutch football teams enjoy their best season in Europe for a decade and Feyenoord fans get a royal surprise on their way to Prague. And a security guard in Almere is led on a wild goose chase by the Netherlands' most famous stuffed rabbit.

2G or not 2G? That is the question vexing Dutch politicians as coronavirus cases keep soaring and the calls for tighter restrictions grow louder. The coalition talks are still on track despite a careless party leader leaving confidential documents on a train. Sparks fly in parliament as far-right party FVD is accused of threatening behaviour. And that could be the only flashpoint we see this winter after ministers bow to pressure to ban New Year fireworks.

With Code Black looming in hospitals, the Dutch government brings in a 'lockdown lite' in the hope of bringing infections down by Sinterklaas. But at least there'll be less black on the faces of the saint's entourage, as research show 'sooty Piets' have become the dominant strain. December 5 is also the date when Mark Rutte hopes to have his fourth cabinet installed, a mere nine months after the general election. In sports news, Feyenoord's plans for a new stadium are torpedoed by rising building costs and Ajax reach a settlement with Appie Nouri's family.

With coronavirus cases on the rise again, experts call for firm, decisive action to bring infections down. Politicians, however, prefer to tinker with work from home rules, rely on a patchy QR code system and put the hard decisions off for another week. Elsewhere this week the Netherlands clocked up a record number of billionaires, while Amsterdam announced plans to restrict the city's housing market for private landlords. Ajax marched on in Europe but Rotterdam's mayor lost his rag with Feyenoord supporters who went on the rampage in Berlin. And if you want to get away from plagues and hooligans, a new ferry route is starting up between Eemshaven and Norway.