Mr. Dick Schoof, 67 years old, officially became the new Prime Minister of the Netherlands, replacing his predecessor Mark Rutte after 14 years in office.
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| King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands and new Prime Minister Dick Schoof (left) at Huis ten Bosch Palace. (Source: ANP) |
On July 2, Mr. Dick Schoof was sworn in as Prime Minister of the Netherlands before King Willem-Alexander, officially succeeding Mr. Mark Rutte, who will almost certainly take on the position of new Secretary General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
In his inauguration speech, Mr Schoof aimed to become “a prime minister for all Dutch citizens”. He described himself as “non-partisan” and had no intention of “bowing down” to Dutch far-right leader Geert Wilders.
The new prime minister has vowed to “decisively” implement the 26-page coalition agreement, which makes “getting a grip on migration” a key focus. He has pledged to implement “the country’s strictest ever refugee policy and the most comprehensive package to control migration”.
According to Politico , the new Prime Minister has an impressive civil service record, with seniority in national security-related jobs. He was a senior official at the Ministry of Justice and Security, head of the AIVD intelligence agency and the NCTV counter-terrorism agency, head of the Dutch immigration agency...
Those who have worked with Mr Schoof often describe him as “professional”, “straightforward” and “scrupulous”. Former Justice and Security Minister Ivo Opstelten said the new prime minister was “an outstanding person, I worked very well with him”. For opposition leader Frans Timmermans, he was a “loyal and dedicated civil servant” and the head of the New Social Contract (NSC) party, Pieter Omtzigt, said, “it would be difficult to find someone more scrupulous than Mr Schoof”.
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| Prime Minister Dick Schoof is sworn in with his new cabinet on July 2. (Source: EPA) |
Previously, Mr. Dick Schoof's nomination as the new Prime Minister of the Netherlands caused many surprises for the people here. He was a long-time member of the Labor Party (PvdA), but decided to leave the party in 2021. Currently, he does not belong to any political party in the Netherlands.
For such a long-serving public servant, Mr. Schoof is not very well known in his own country, nor among leaders in the European Union (EU). In a poll conducted by the Dutch television program EenVandaag in late May, 50% of respondents did not know him and 11% knew his name.
Another surprise for the Netherlands was that the popular leader of the Freedom Party (PVV) Geert Wilders did not run for the position of head of government after the party's impressive victory in the parliamentary election in November 2023, reaching 37 out of 150 MPs for a four-year term.
Mr. Geert Wilders formed a far-right cabinet to convince three other parties to form a majority coalition in the National Assembly with a total of 88 MPs, including the Freedom and Democracy Party (VVD), the Civic Civic Movement Party (BBB) and the National Security Council. All four parties agreed to choose Mr. Dick Schoof as Prime Minister, with a commitment to implement the ruling coalition's action program.
Right-wing politician Geert Wilders said the former intelligence official “has a lot of experience with the issues that need attention”.
It is clear that Mr Schoof, an amateur marathon runner in his spare time, will need to use all his experience and stamina to maintain the coalition and "race" against the pressure to become "Prime Minister for all Dutch citizens".
As political science professor Sarah de Lange (University of Amsterdam) commented, Mr. Dick Schoof “will have a lot of work to do to control ideological and personal conflicts, but with his extensive experience heading various government agencies, he will be well equipped to protect himself”.
Source: https://baoquocte.vn/tan-thu-tuong-ha-lan-nguoi-moi-ap-luc-va-chay-dua-277294.html
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