PM Mark Rutte is one of Europe’s longest-serving political leaders.
The Dutch government has been under pressure to resign, and today that has happened. The calls for the government to resign after 20,000 families were accused of benefits fraud by the tax authority and those accusations turned out to be unfounded. A report found that the false accusations had caused a great deal of upset and harm to those accused.
Prime Minister Mark Rutte will remain in place until a new coalition is formed following the election on March 17. However, he will simply assume the role of a caretaker. He has admitted to having made mistakes during a press conference: ‘Mistakes were made at every level of the state, with the result that terrible injustice was done to thousands of parents.’
The lockdown rules will remain in place until February 9, when they will be re-assessed and the vaccine campaign will continue to run as normal. Additionally, a curfew is still being considered. Rutte could still win a fourth term as Prime Minister in the upcoming election. He is currently leading in the polls.
Read more: The Government Is Considering Introducing A Curfew