The Tweede Kamer, the lower house of the Dutch parliament, wants April 25 to be the national day against anti-Semitism. Every year around that date, the Tweede Kamer must also hold a plenary debate on anti-Semitism. JA21’s proposal to this effect is widely supported by the Kamer, became apparent during a parliamentary debate on Thursday.
Cheese is becoming a hot commodity in the thieving world. Thieves are increasingly targeting cheese shops, where the loot is quite lucrative. “You can easily spend between 100 and 150 euros per whole cheese,” Wim Meure of the Association of Farm Dairy Producers told RTL Nieuws. “It’s been happening more and more in recent years.”
The Affordable Rent Act was passed in a vote on Thursday by the Tweede Kamer, the lower house of Parliament. This law, submitted by outgoing Interior Affairs Minister Hugo de Jonge, should reduce the rental prices on some units that are available for tenants on the private rental sector.
The health insurance deductible could be slashed if the four parties trying to form a new Cabinet manage to cobble together a coalition agreement. The out-of-pocket costs individuals pay for healthcare in the Netherlands has been frozen at a minimum of 385 euros for several euros, though people can choose to pay a higher deductible to lower their insurance premiums.
Nearly one year after Amsterdam banned smoking cannabis on the Red Light District streets, the city’s enforcers have issued seven fines. Enforcement officers stuck to warnings for a long time, a spokesperson for the city told the Telegraaf reports.
Leiden University wants to fire a professor for "long-term unacceptable and often transgressive behavior." The professor is allegedly guilty of abuse of power and manipulation, which has led to a culture of fear amongst the staff. The university will bring the case to a subdistrict court judge to have the professor's contract annulled as quickly as possible, the academic institution announced on Thursday.
Turkey will likely announce support for Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s bid to take over as the next NATO secretary-general. Rutte is expected to visit Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday, although the trip is not on Rutte’s public agenda.Erdogan is expected to make the decision over the course of the meeting or soon after, sources close to the Turkish leader told Bloomberg. It could be announced within a few weeks, the news agency reported.
Retail vacancy is increasing in the Netherlands’ 40 largest city centers. In the first quarter, 2,500 stores stood empty, 8.3 percent of the total. Many have been empty for over a year, according to a report by Colliers. Shops are buckling under rising costs and coronavirus debts that are coming due, the real estate adviser said.
The Supervisory Board at Ajax has voted to keep Alex Kroes on as an executive, but only after he stepped down as their chief executive officer and executive board chair, the Amsterdam football club announced on Thursday. Kroes was suspended by the club after it emerged that he bought more than 17,000 publicly-traded shares in Ajax, a listed company, roughly one week before his appointment as CEO was made public.
More bees were counted during a national volunteer driven tally this year despite the weather being cold and inconsistent during the ten days that the bees were counted. Around 18 bees were spotted per count, three more than last year. It is lower than the years before 2023 when an average of around 20 bees were spotted per count. The 2,300 people who participated in the count saw 40,000 bees, bumblebees, and hoverflies. Most of the types spotted are better suited to cold weather, such as the...
Government agencies acted “improperly and inappropriately” during the crisis at the asylum registration center in Ter Apel in the summer of 2022. The government took aid goods offered away from asylum seekers and citizens who offered assistance were threatened with arrest. The National Ombudsman condemned the government authorities’ actions in a new report titled “Forbidden to provide assistance?”
The Koninklijke Marechaussee is prepared for busy weeks during the May school holidays. A spokesperson has said that they have sufficient staff for the period. “If it gets really busy, we prioritize the departing and transferring passengers so that nobody has to miss their flight. It could be the case that you have to wait longer at the passport control on arrival.”The Marechaussee is a branch of the Dutch military. It is tasked with monitoring the country's borders, some security...