Candidate Foreign Minister thinks he can explain far-right cooperation abroad

Candidate Minister of Foreign Affairs Caspar Veldkamp (NSC) is not worried about the questions he will receive internationally about the Cabinet that includes the far-right PVV. He does not expect that the participation of Geert Wilders’ party will lead to international unrest. If that does happen, he can reassure them, Veldkamp said before his meeting with prospective Prime Minister Dick Schoof and formateur Richard van Zwol. The next step in the Cabinet formation process starts today. The candidate Cabinet members will be questioned by parliament.

“The Netherlands remains constructive in the EU. NATO comes first in our security. The Netherlands looks at international dependencies and what to do with them. The Netherlands continues to contribute to international missions. Also in the NATO area, but also beyond,” he summarized. The PVV, VVD, NSC, and BBB’s main lines agreement contains “all kinds of things that guarantee a degree of continuity,” Veldkamp said.

The former diplomat knows that questions will always be asked about what is happening in the Netherlands and how political cooperation takes place. “That’s just part of the job. And I realize very well that if I were to step onto that international stage later, I could also be asked those kinds of questions. But I have complete confidence that I will be able to answer them well.”

Veldkamp said he supports the main lines agreement and attaches “particular value” to the agreements that the four parties made in January about respecting the Constitution, fundamental rights, and the rule of law. A remarkable number of NSC and VVD candidates have stressed that they’ll ensure everyone keeps to the agreements and rule of law. Many PVV candidates have promised to behave as Cabinet members should.

Next step in Cabinet formation process starts

A first in the Tweede Kamer today: parliamentarians will question candidate Cabinet members in hearings. MPs can ask questions about the suitability of the candidates that the coalition parties PVV, VVD, NSC, and BBB have put forward as Minister or State Secretary. It is the first time these hearings are being held, and not everyone is equally enthusiastic.

The left-wing opposition parties GroenLInks-PvdA, D66, PvdD, DENK, and Volt have indicated that they will work together with their questions. But CDA, SP, SGP, and ChristenUnie will not delegate MPs to question the candidates. They do not think hearings before the Cabinet is sworn in are the right form. The factions of the new coalition parties will attend. The question is how firmly they will question their own Cabinet members.

In addition to being a first, the hearings are also an experiment to see exactly how much the MPs learn about the candidate Cabinet members. Each party can ask only one question per round, and further questions are not allowed.

The Cabinet members of one Ministry will be questioned at each hearing. First up is the Ministry of Home Affairs, with Judith Uitermark (NSC) as the candidate Minister and two candidate State Secretaries: Zsolt Szabó (PVV, Kingdom Relations and Digitalization) and Eddie van Marum (BBB), who will oversee the recovery of the Groningen earthquake area. The incoming Minister of Housing and Spatial Planning, Mona Keijzer (also the BBB Deputy Prime Minister), will be questioned on her own because there are no other Cabinet members in her yet-to-be-established Ministry.

Candidate NSC Minister Eppo Bruins of Education, Culture, and Science will follow with State Secretary Mariëlle Paul. VVD member Paul is currently a caretaker Minister and Bruins was a parliamentarian for the ChristenUnie for years. The first day of hearings concludes with the Ministry of Social Affairs. In addition to candidate Minister Eddy van Hijum (also Deputy Prime Minister for the NSC), Jurgen Nobel (VVD) will be questioned as the incoming State Secretary.

The Tweede Kamer set four days aside for the hearings. Candidate Prime Minister Dick Schoof will not be questioned in this way.