About: Netherlands
Dutch minister resigns over manipulated report of crimes committed by asylum-seekers
The Netherlands' minister for migration, Mark Harbers, resigned Tuesday (21 May) after a parliamentary outcry over elided data on crimes committed by asylum-seekers, in a bad blow to the government just ahead of European elections.
EU backs cyber sanctions regime, following Dutch and UK pressure
Under new EU rules, individuals and groups conducting cyber-attacks from outside the bloc may be hit with potential sanctions, including travel bans and asset freezes. But the measures announced on Friday will be applied only to "persons and entities" and not to national governments.
EU leaders sideline eurozone divisions at summit on future
EU leaders meeting in a mountainous city in Romania on Thursday (9 May) will discuss the future of Europe, but the fate of the euro will be mostly ignored.
Germany, Poland snub EU appeal for greater climate ambition
The governments of France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Sweden, Denmark, Spain, Portugal and Luxembourg have launched an appeal to boost EU climate action ahead of a major summit on the future of Europe taking place in Romania next Thursday (9 May).
Juncker points the finger at Germany, Austria, Netherlands for impeding eurozone reform
The Netherlands, Austria "and all too often Germany" are preventing deeper euro zone integration, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker told German newspaper Handelsblatt.
New Dutch populists surge in ‘Rutte referendum’
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte will lose his senate majority after upstart anti-EU populists surged in provincial elections just two days after a suspected terror attack in Utrecht.
France ‘steps on the gas’ in eurobudget talks
France made surprising back-and-forth moves on Nord Stream 2, which could be explained by the country's effort to secure German and Dutch support in a completely different dossier.
Dutch electric fishing in Brussels’ sights
Following a complaint by the NGO BLOOM in October 2017, the European Commission is expected to initiate an infringement procedure against the Netherlands for illegally issuing licenses to trawlers engaging in electric fishing. EURACTIV France’s partner Journal de l’environnement reports.
Dutch government seeks emergency Brexit powers, MPs resist
Dutch lawmakers on Thursday (24 January) grilled a top minister on a controversial bill granting Prime Minister Mark Rutte's government emergency powers to counteract any unforseen post-Brexit effects.
BBC eyeing post-Brexit base in Brussels or Amsterdam
British public broadcaster the BBC could open a major new European office after Brexit, perhaps in Brussels or Amsterdam, a Belgian official told AFP on Thursday (24 January).
Clogs gift for EU medicines agency’s Brexit move
Dutch officials handed over a pair of clogs and the keys to the European Medicines Agency's temporary base in Amsterdam on Wednesday (9 January) as the watchdog prepares to leave London after Brexit.
Dutch may take Russia to court over MH17
The Netherlands is considering dragging Russia to an international court over the downing of flight MH17 after talks over responsibility ground to an impasse, the Dutch foreign minister said Thursday (20 December).
Dozens of mafia suspects held in international sting
Police arrested dozens of suspected mobsters in Europe and South America on Wednesday (5 December) in a huge international swoop targeting Italy's notorious 'Ndrangheta mafia clan, officials said.
Géraldine Schwarz: ‘My grandmother was fascinated by Hitler’
Understanding the history of average people during the Second World War fills in the gaps in collective memory, which are often exploited by the far right in Europe. This is the argument made by Les Amnésiques (“The Amnesiacs”), which was awarded the 2018 European Book Prize and reads like a novel. EURACTIV France reports.
Russia claims fresh ‘proof’ Ukraine downed flight MH17
Russia on Monday (17 September) released fresh information to back its claim the missile that downed a Malaysia Airlines flight over war-torn Ukraine in 2014 was fired by Kiev's forces.
EU puts ‘North Macedonia’ and Albania on hold until the European elections
The European Union agreed a compromise on Tuesday (26 June) whereby it would open negotiations to join the bloc with Albania and Macedonia in June next year, provided a string of conditions on rule of law, crime and corruption are met.
‘Differences’ persist on eurozone budget ahead of key EU summit
Eurogroup head Mário Centeno warned Monday (25 June) of differing opinions towards a plan by France and Germany to establish a eurozone budget, ahead of a key EU summit to discuss the matter.
Brussels begins big battle on post-Brexit budget
The EU will this week unveil its first formal plans for a larger, one-trillion-euro-plus long-term budget after Britain's departure, which threaten to further deepen divisions in the bloc.
Erdogan: Austria will ‘pay a price’ for banning Turkish campaigning
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Saturday (21 April) criticised Austria for planning to ban any possible campaigning for the June elections, saying that countries attempting to undermine his country's democratic struggle would "pay a price".
Eight northern EU states urge caution in eurozone reforms
Eight northern European countries said today (6 March) that euro zone reforms should focus on completing the banking union, improving compliance with budget rules and setting up a European Monetary Fund, with more ambitious plans left for later.
Rutte pours cold water on Bulgaria’s Schengen and Eurozone dreams
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte poured cold water on Bulgaria’s ambition to unlock its stalled bid to join the EU border-free Schengen area on Tuesday (6 February) and said the country also needed more work to meet the criteria for joining the Eurozone.
Italy to appeal to European court over EU drugs agency
Italy will appeal to the European Court of Justice against the decision by European authorities to move the bloc's medicines agency EMA to Holland from Britain, a government source said yesterday (30 January).
Italy cries foul over temporary accommodation of EU Medicines Agency
Dutch officials and the head of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) sought yesterday (29 January) to allay any jitters among the agency's 900 London-based staff who are being asked to move to Amsterdam because of Britain's departure from the EU.