Politics•16 Nov ’23 19:20•Adapted on 16 Nov ’23 21:41 Author: Thijs Baas
It is logical that there is disappointment among potential D66 voters about the past cabinet. Many people preferred Sigrid Kaag to Mark Rutte as Prime Minister, but they still got Rutte, says D66 party leader Rob Jetten. ‘I can’t do anything about that anymore, but when I tell people that we have invested enormously in the quality of education and science in recent years, many people still go for the clear, progressive and green sound of D66.’
‘People would have preferred Kaag as prime minister’
11 min 24 sec
Jetten notices, especially in rooms with students, that the goodwill factor for D66 is no longer self-evident. But in terms of content, the party has a lot to offer students and young people, he says. ‘We have invested enormously in the quality of education, teacher salaries and science in recent years. The basic grant is back and we also want to keep the interest on student loans at 0 percent for the ‘unlucky generation’. And we especially want to help them in their next phase of life with free childcare and the construction of affordable starter homes.’
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Jetten hopes that it should win over this group of students in particular in the last week before the elections. The party is also stronger in possible coalition negotiations with, among others, Pieter Omtzigt’s NSC. A combination with varying perspectives, he says. ‘We have made progress very quickly on social security and administrative innovation, but Omtzigt is taking a more conservative course on European cooperation, the climate approach and women’s and gay rights.’
‘No cabinet about the extreme right’
Although this still requires serious negotiations, Jetten is very keen to prevent a cabinet from forming over the extreme right. ‘That seems disastrous to me for many population groups, but also for our position within Europe and for our business climate.’ That is really my promise to the voter: a vote for D66 is also a guarantee that we will do everything we can to prevent a cabinet with the PVV.’
Also read | Timmermans fierce on Jetten’s climate performance
What Jetten is missing in the current election campaign is a fundamental debate about Europe. European cooperation is particularly crucial for climate, migration and security, says Jetten. ‘As a small country we cannot do it alone, we need a strong Europe. That is also one of the reasons that as a liberal voter it is better not to vote for the VVD: then you get the PVV for free and that is really a party that does not like European cooperation.’
‘We must above all work together from the broad political center’
Rob Jetten, D66
The attack by GroenLinks-PvdA party leader Frans Timmermans on the climate policy of the Rutte IV cabinet was cringeworthy, Jetten now says. According to him, a lot of progress has been made in recent years in the field of climate and energy. ‘Climate goals are finally within reach. We are the European leader in solar energy and we are going fast with offshore wind.’
Green hydrogen
In addition, there is considerable progress in developing the green hydrogen economy for industry and investing in insulating houses for lower energy bills, says Jetten. ‘So I was happy that Mr Timmermans quickly returned to that attack. We must above all work together from the broad political center to prevent us from having another experiment on the flanks, as with Balkenende with the LPF and Rutte with PVV. That really doesn’t help the Dutch economy.’
What do other parties think?
Rob Jetten earlier this year on Budget Day. Image: BNR
All the BNR debate:
2023-11-17 07:46:02
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