Some ministers who are out of a job following the October general election are having trouble finding a new one because of the strict Dutch rules on lobbying, the Telegraaf reported on Tuesday.
The law bans former ministers from lobbying in all sectors in which they had active influence, and requires them to have potential new jobs checked with an independent commission to make sure it complies with the rules.
The legislation was enacted in November 2021 after the EU’s anti-corruption agency Greco criticised the Netherlands for failing to ensure former ministers were not involved in a conflict of interests with their new jobs.
According to former health minister Fleur Agema, 65 former ministers are still claiming wachtgeld, the special unemployment benefit paid to former ministers without a new job, and the rules are stopping them finding work.
“Many of the ministers in the previous Dick Schoof-led cabinet were specialists in their field,” she said. “And if their expertise is in a field subject to the lobby ban, it is extra complicated to find a new job.”
The Telegraaf spoke to various former ministers and junior ministers about their experiences on the jobs market.
Agema, who focused on healthcare as an MP and who was health minister in the previous government, told the paper she was offered a “great job” shortly after the cabinet collapsed, but was unable to accept it because of the ban.
Former junior defence minister Gijs Tuinman, who was a professional soldier, told the paper that “in fact, you are on the bench for two years” – the length of time the ban lasts.
“I am offered a job almost every day, but I have to reject them all,” he said. “I don’t want the government’s money and I would rather earn my own cash with a job.”
Former junior justice minister Arno Rutte said the anti-lobbying rules may go too far in some cases – in particular the ban on having any “business contact” with civil servants.
“We don’t need to feel sorry for politicians but…I do think the rules are very tough,” he said. “It is very far reaching to say you cannot have contact with a ministry if it operates in your sector. That is leaning towards an occupational ban.”
Former social affairs minister Eddy van Hijum declined to tell the paper where he was applying for jobs but said he did not feel that the ban on lobbying was hindering his search.
“The anti-revolving door legislation was much needed in the Netherlands,” he said. “You’ve still got lots of options, and working for a public sector organisation is not affected anyway.”
Wachtgeld bill
In February, the Financieele Dagblad reported that the bill for wachtgeld has gone up from €1.6 million to €8.1 million over the past 10 years.
Ministers and MPs who end up jobless are paid 80% of their salary for the first year and 70% for a further two years and two months, depending on how long they were in office. A cabinet minister earns some €14,760 a month and an MP €10,134, plus expenses and pension contributions.
MPs who serve less than three months are still entitled to six months’ payments, and the benefit is also paid if MPs and ministers step down voluntarily.
