Omtzigt: becoming prime minister is an option in a Cabinet with line ministers
NSC party leader Pieter Omtzigt wants to become Prime Minister if he then leads a Cabinet that otherwise consists of specialists in their respective fields. Omtzigt would prefer such a Cabinet with specialist ministers, he said on the TV program Buitenhof.
Als er een kabinet komt met vakministers, is @PieterOmtzigt bereid daar leiding aan te geven.
— Buitenhof (@Buitenhoftv) November 19, 2023
'Ik heb een stellige voorkeur heb om fractievoorzitter te zijn, maar een regering met vakministers op afstand van de Kamer, daar zou ik ook kunnen zitten', zegt hij in #buitenhof pic.twitter.com/gOtAy5yQGw
The former CDA MP, who is standing in the elections with his own party for the first time, stated that he still prefers to lead the NSC party. The most important thing, however, is that parliament comes back into power, said Omtzigt. In his opinion, the fact that parliamentary group chairmen and deputy prime ministers of the coalition parties sit at the levers should come to an end.
When asked in Buitenhof, the NSV chairman said that in the event of such a Cabinet consisting of Union ministers, he could "also shape the necessary change from within the Cabinet". According to the NSC, the party could implement the necessary reforms with such a Cabinet, with Omtzigt ready to lead it, the party wrote on X.
Some parties, including the Forum voor Democratie, are in favor of an expert Cabinet. The D66 emphasized that it has appointed ministers from the field in Rutte's fourth Cabinet: Robbert Dijkgraaf for education and Ernst Kuipers for public health.
In any case, the Netherlands has not seen a Cabinet made up entirely of experts in recent decades. It also remains to be seen whether the other coalition parties will support the appointment of line ministers.
Reporting by ANP and NL Times