PM considers part-time jobs for royal family to prevent ‘tension’

The government wants to discuss exactly what work the immediate family members of King Willem-Alexander can do in the future. This applies to members of the Royal House who do not receive an allowance from the state, such as King Willem-Alexander’s brother, Prince Constantijn, and his wife Laurentien.

About her work for parents benefit parents a debate arose this summer. As a result, Laurentien eventually resigned.

Prime Minister Schoof admits that future actions must be considered, also because the princesses Alexia and Ariane themselves will have to work later. “It is very important to think about the secondary school activities, also for the generations to come,” said the Prime Minister.

Members of the royal family who are not entitled to benefits must earn their own income, but are partly under ministerial responsibility. They are not allowed to say or do everything in public and must submit their activity in advance to the responsible minister. But what exactly is or is not said or done is not recorded anywhere.

Schoof needs time to think about the subject, he said in the debate. “We have to prevent them from going against the cabinet,” said the prime minister, who spoke of “generic tension”. “But I recognize its importance.” He also talks about a complex subject.

In the debate, it was mainly the government parties VVD and NSC that raised the issue of the part-time jobs of members of the Royal Household who were not entitled to benefits. The ruling VVD party notes that “discomfort” has recently arisen about the situation. VVD MP Aartsen does not want to mention names, but he believes that these members “should not be part of a political debate”.

The ruling NSC party talks openly about Princess Laurentien and Queen Máxima, which, to the dismay of the Ministry of Finance, statements done about the digital euro. “There is discomfort in society and we need to prevent that in the future,” said NSC MP Six Dijkstra.

This summer, Princess Laurentien was criticized for the way she advocated for alternative treatment of the childcare allowance issue through the (Equal) Worthy Recovery (SGH) foundation. She openly criticized the approach of the Ministry of Finance and revealed reports of inappropriate behaviour. People also wondered how it was possible that a member of the royal family was concerned about such a politically sensitive subject. The third Rutte cabinet collapsed in 2021 over the benefits.

The VVD wants a “committee of wise people” to look at the “functions, duties, size and composition” of the royal house. NSC wants an “outside” advisory committee.

The SP has a problem with the NSC request, because of Princess Laurentien’s commitment to the affected welfare parents. MP NSC Six Dijkstra emphasizes that discomfort arose as to who was responsible for dealing with the king’s sister-in-law: the Prime Minister or the Secretary of State for Welfare. “It is not my intention to throw Princess Laurentien under the bus.

During the debate on the king’s budget it also became clear that there is no majority for the PVV proposal not to increase the king’s income by 78,000 euros in 2025. Parties such as GroenLinks-PvdA and D66 believe that this is not legally possible and they find it too easy to shortchange the king in this way.

There is also dissatisfaction in the House of Representatives that this cabinet does not expect the king to pay salary and income tax, as a majority of the House has been asking for some time .