Rutte pledges a new start, as work starts on a
coalition deal Politics
October 1,
2021
Now that
the four parties in the current coalition have agreed to hold more concrete
talks on continuing in office, work can begin on drawing up policies for the
coming 3.5 years. Chief negotiator Johan Remkes has called on the four to put
together a short coalition agreement as quickly as possible and not to close
their eyes to appointing ministers from other parties as well. In addition, he
said, the small Christian party ChristenUnie had agreed not to block any
initiatives from MPs which relate to medical ethical issues. ‘It would be mad
if agreements were made which would limit the power of parliament,’ he said.
‘That would be going back to the old political ways.’ There is wide support for
political culture renewal within the four parties, he said, adding that he was
concerned by the current destructive way of doing business in The Hague. ‘This
has to stop,’ Remkes said. The breakthrough in the formation process came last
weekend, when D66 leader Sigrid Kaag said she would be prepared to include
ChristenUnie in the talks after all. The two parties are diametrically opposed
on issues such as euthanasia and assisted dying. The next cabinet, she said on
Thursday after a deal was reached on a restart, should be ‘more progressive,
open, generous and human’. VVD leader Mark Rutte, who is poised to lead his
fourth cabinet, has also committed to a new approach. The next cabinet will be
a ‘new start’ with a new culture and programme, he told reporters. In
particular, the new coalition will have to form alliances with opposition
parties in order to get controversial issues through the upper house. The four
parties have a small majority in the lower house, but are six seats short in
the 75-seat senate. Trust The NRC said in an editorial that the next cabinet
will have its work cut out to win back the trust of voters after six months of
‘shadow dancing’. ‘Major crises such as the climate and housing market have not
led to significant strategy choices, even though some money was freed up in the
budget,’ the paper said. Other issues such as the childcare benefit scandal,
the paper said, are still not resolved. ‘The parties should have realised,’ the
paper said, ‘that trust can only be regained by action.’
Read more
at DutchNews.nl:
Sem comentários:
Enviar um comentário