{"id":364792,"date":"2024-05-28T17:19:55","date_gmt":"2024-05-28T15:19:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/2024\/05\/28\/premier-paesi-bassi-dick-schoof-destra\/"},"modified":"2024-06-12T16:12:56","modified_gmt":"2024-06-12T14:12:56","slug":"right-wing-coalition-in-the-netherlands-finds-premier-candidate-former-intelligence-chief-schoof","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/en\/2024\/05\/28\/right-wing-coalition-in-the-netherlands-finds-premier-candidate-former-intelligence-chief-schoof\/","title":{"rendered":"Right-wing coalition in the Netherlands finds designated Prime Minister: former intelligence chief Schoof"},"content":{"rendered":"

Brussels\u00a0\u2013 The right-wing coalition in the Netherlands is racing toward governing the country, and now, with two weeks to go before the agreement between the four forces<\/a> ranging from liberals to the far right, there is also the name of the prime ministerial candidate. As reported<\/a> by the Dutch broadcaster Nos<\/em>, this afternoon (May 28),\u00a0the current secretary general of the Ministry of Justice and Security, Dick Schoof, met with the leaders of the four parties<\/strong> to agree on the strategic lines of the future cabinet that he would lead.<\/p>\n

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The secretary-general of the Ministry of Justice and Security and Prime Minister-designate of the Netherlands, Dick Schoof<\/figcaption><\/figure>
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A 67-year-old official with no political experience, Schoof has held the highest non-political position in the Ministry of Justice and Security<\/strong> since March 1, 2020. He previously served as director of the Immigration and Naturalization Service (from 1999 to 2003), director general of police (from 2010 to 2013), national coordinator for security and counterterrorism (from 2013 to 2018), and most importantly,\u00a0director general of the National Intelligence and Security Service<\/strong> (from 2018 until taking up the new post). According to reports from the meeting, Schoof would have the backing of the leaders of all four political forces, namely the liberals of the People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy<\/strong> (VVD), the centre-right New Social Contract<\/strong> (NSC), the Civic-Country Movement<\/strong> (BBB), and the far-right anti-immigration, anti-Islamic, and strongly Euroskeptic party PVV (Party for Freedom<\/strong>).<\/p>\n

“Dick Schoof has an excellent track record; he is nonpartisan and therefore above parties<\/strong>, he has integrity and is also very understanding,” commented<\/a> on X the leader of the far-right party, Geert Wilders<\/strong>, anticipating the outcome of the meeting. “He is our candidate and will be prime minister for all Dutch people,” claimed the VVD leader, Dilan Ye\u015filg\u00f6z-Zegerius<\/strong>, while the leader of NSC, Pieter Omtzigt<\/strong>, stressed that Schoof has “a lot of relevant experience” for policy areas “that matter” in the Netherlands\u2014a reference to migration and security. “In the unstable world we live in now, it’s good to have a prime minister who has experience,” BBB leader Caroline van der Plas<\/strong> reiterated. At this point, negotiations to define the team of ministers and secretaries of state will have to be pursued in the coming weeks, and it seems likely that\u00a0the new government of the Netherlands will\u00a0take office no earlier than early July<\/strong>.<\/span><\/p>\n