Over 11 thousand Netherlands citizens with dual nationality were subject to stricter inspections by the Tax Authority than other Dutch people. Their second nationality was an official selection criterion to determine whether they were an increased risk of fraud, the Tax Authority acknowledged after an investigation by RTL Nieuws and Trouw. This is the first time the tax office confirmed that nationality was used as an "indicator" to make a distinction between Dutch citizens, according to RTL Nieuws.
Renske Leijten
Apr 7 '20 20:00
Finance Minister Wopke Hoekstra received support from a majority in parliament for the government's stance on European Union aid for countries in trouble due to the coronavirus. The Dutch government is against so-called coronabonds, and wants strict requirements attached to any emergency financing, NOS reports.
Later in the evening, reports emerged that the European Stabilization Mechanism (ESM) could instead be used to make a quarter of a trillion euros available to help countries in the EU pay for the medical problems caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
Feb 14 '20 16:00
The Tax Authority suspended the provisional tax refund of 124,000 people in January, a significant increase compared to the between 79 thousand and 82 thousand halted in 2017, 2018 and 2019. Thousands of these suspensions were unjustified and many of the affected persons were only notified about the suspension in mid-January, when they should already have received their money, RTL Nieuws reports.
Jan 6 '20 11:00
Support for a nationwide ban on firecrackers and rockets is growing within the political parties, including within the coalition. Coalition parties D66 and ChristenUnie called for such a ban. And two VVD mayors went against their party's position to call for such a ban, NOS reports.
Acting mayor Johan Remkes of The Hague argued for an "enforceable ban on firecrackers and rockets" for consumers on television program Buitenhof. And mayor Jan van Zanen of Utrecht asked the VVD to cooperate in a ban on all consumer fireworks.
Dec 11 '19 13:40
The Tax Authority released the files of some parents whose childcare allowance was halted because they were unjustly suspected of fraud, at the parents' request because they wanted to know what led to these suspicions. But to the fury of a number of parliamentarians, large parts of the documents are completely blacked-out, according to a video SP parliamentarian Renske Leijten posted on Twitter.
Feb 2 '17 09:47
The lower house of Dutch parliament is against a measure proposed by Health Minister Edith Schippers (VVD) to force disturbed persons to be admitted for observation if needed, government party PvdA confirmed to NU.nl.
"Vulnerable people with mental illness can better be helped by giving them the proper care sooner, so that the violent measure of forced admission can be prevented", PvdA parliamentarian Lea Bouwmeester said to the newspaper. "That should really be first to order, before state coercion is used."
Sep 27 '16 16:30
Dutch parliamentarians are shocked and outraged by the high premium increase health insurer DSW announced on Monday. The insurer announced an increase of 9.4 percent, much higher than the 3.5 percent the Ministry of Health predicted on Budget Day.
Mar 15 '16 08:00
The millions of euros of profit Slotervaart hospital made with the production of heroin, was only ever reported in a secret annual report. And not a matter of publicly available information, as Minister Edith Schippers of Public Health led Parliament to believe
Dec 2 '15 16:00
SP Parliamentarians Henk van Gerven and Renske Leijten are demanding answers from Health Minister Edith Schippers on her husband's role in the turbulent period at the Slotervaart Hospital in Amsterdam.
Jun 22 '15 10:06
The majority of Dutch citizens - 57 percent - want cigarettes to not be visible in stores, according to a survey by TNS NIPO. Store owners are already required to keep tobacco out of sight in Canada, Ireland and England.
Apr 29 '15 11:36
State Secretary Martin van Rijn of Public Health has admitted that the introduction of the new system for personal budgets has "not gone well" in a letter sent to the Tweede Kamer, lower house of parliament, on Tuesday.
Feb 25 '15 12:03
About 24 thousand claims from people with a personal budget have not been paid yet, according to a letter State Secretary Martin van Rijn (Health) wrote to the Tweede Kamer (lower house of parliament)
Feb 6 '15 08:41
A discount on the excess for people who go to a healthcare provider that has a contract with their insurer is one of the measures that Minister Edith Schippers (Public Health, Welfare and Sport) is preparing for her healthcare law, RTL reported last night.
Jun 27 '14 15:00
The Cabinet and Parliament have approved plans for hospitals to start making profits, which will be paid out to investors, such as pension funds. This plan from Minister Edith Schippers of Health received support from governing parties VVD and PvdA, as well as D66.
