The new cabinet of PVV, NSC, VVD and BBB in the making must be the most undesirable and stupid cabinet in decades. At least, judging by the reports from most mainstream media. Opposition politicians and outgoing ministers are fully participating in this image. And it is not just the PVV participation that is causing this.
At the same time, opinion research by Ipsos I&O shows that Dutch voters are predominantly positive about the new coalition, as they currently know it. In any case, it is a considerably better appreciation than that of the last Rutte cabinet when it took office.
The new government in the making cannot be truly undesirable, also in view of the election results. Rather, there are clashing realities among groups that no longer touch each other.
Courage is needed among ministers
The fact is that its arrival is not a simple birth; and the race is still not over. There were also many mutual differences that had to be bridged, with a number of PVV positions being particularly sensitive. This problem appears to have been resolved for the time being. Now the game with the figures still has to be completed, which will also be difficult enough. See the Plasterk case. The question is not only whether there are good candidates for a position in the cabinet. The candidates must also have courage. There will undoubtedly be a lot of pressure on new ministers in a cabinet that is classified as extreme right-wing and climate-unfriendly. Perhaps partly for that reason, several candidates have reportedly already declined a ministerial post.
Most exciting post
And because the new coalition wants to knock down quite a few sacred cows, the question remains which ministerial post will be the most difficult to fill. Is it that of asylum affairs, that of agriculture (and nature) or the prime minister's post?
Commentators in the national media are already certain that much of what the new coalition wants in the areas of agriculture, nature and countryside will be unattainable. Brussels will give them a cold shower, scientists will say it is not possible and judges will shut them down.
Outgoing cabinet warns
The outgoing cabinet also makes this clear pieces on behalf of former informants Dijkgraaf and Van Zwol, everything is done to prove that there are no alternatives to the chosen direction. Derogation, KDW, nature policy, it has all already been tried and it is pointless to want to change again, it is stated.
Outgoing Agriculture Minister Adema also calls out that the new coalition is depriving farmers of billions by abolishing the Transition Fund, among other things.
Purchase and other billions
Of course, it depends on which lens you look at it through. The potential recipients of the billions in buyouts and buyouts are often those who are leaving agriculture. The purchased land is passed on to the large land management organizations (TBOs, for which a state aid case is still ongoing). Would no one notice that?
The fact is that, while everything about support to farmers is public, the assistance and funding provided to TBOs is almost invisible to ordinary citizens, with the exception of the subsidy via the Postcode Lottery.
Unprecedented IPO support
Organizations such as Staatsbosbeheer, Natuurmonumenten and the provincial landscapes receive hundreds of millions in structural support every year through a mandate that runs through the Interprovincial Consultation (IPO). Ordinary members of Parliament do not see anything about it, may not even be aware of it, because they are 'regular' money flows that apparently do not require attention, and because since 2015 the deputies have had the power to decide on this only within the IPO board. Outgoing Minister Van der Wal also has no desire to provide more insight into the financial ins and outs of, for example, Staatsbosbeheer, it appears. answer to parliamentary questions. Talking about transparency.
Money or financial space
Where concrete investments are concerned, the new coalition indeed wants to allocate less money for agriculture, around €5 billion for innovation and manure plus another €500 million annually for nature management by farmers. This is money to help farmers get started, not to help them leave. Moreover, it could be that, if the coalition succeeds in removing all kinds of legal obstacles, farmers will have much more financial scope. This is because they have to incur fewer costs, can concentrate on helpful investments and may even be able to obtain financing more easily. None of this is certain yet, but it is a prospect.
Agricultural network gone
Yet there are also groups within the new coalition that are not entirely happy. For example, there is the network within the VVD Liberal Green, which is not enthusiastic about the coalition's agricultural initials and nature plans. The group appears to be on the verge of merging with the agricultural network at the proposal of the central board (and actually taking it over, as feared by liberal agricultural interests).
However, whatever is said, let the new cabinet be judged on its actions and results, not on the ideas that are presented about it.