Minister Van Ark takes six weeks of rest: ‘Suffer from neck problems’ | Inland

The duties of the VVD minister, formerly state secretary of Social Affairs, have been taken care of for so long by Paul Blokhuis, who as CU state secretary of Public Health already knows the department well.

“I hope to have recovered enough by September to be able to get back to work,” Van Ark wrote on Twitter. The cabinet will meet again from mid-August. Van Ark is also a member of the ‘core team’ that deals with the corona measures. The part of Van Ark’s package of tasks that deals with tackling the corona crisis will lie with Minister Hugo de Jonge (Public Health).

Recently, the cabinet has already been reshuffled. State Secretary Stientje van Veldhoven (Infrastructure, D66) is exchanging the Binnenhof for a job elsewhere. Minister Stef Blok (VVD) switched from Foreign Affairs to Economic Affairs. Sigrid Kaag (D66) became foreign minister. Her position of Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation was taken over by ‘newcomer’ Tom de Bruin. Member of Parliament Steven van Weyenberg (D66) became State Secretary for Infrastructure, MP Dennis Wiersma (VVD) became State Secretary for Social Affairs, a position that had previously been filled by fellow party member Bas van ‘t Wout. However, he got overworked.

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