DutchNews Podcast

Rob Jetten fetches the rusting polder model from the Catshuis loft and sits down with the trade unions to revive the budget talks. The IND is in a bind after European judges order it to take 140,000 Ukrainian asylum applications out of cold storage. The government wants to recruit a 130,000-strong Home Guard in case Russia or any of Dilan Yesilgöz's other enemies invade. The student debt mountain is shrinking but graduates are facing an interest rate hike. And do rabbits hold the key to solving the nitrogen crisis?

Eelco Heinen celebrates too soon after striking a budget deal with opposition parties that lasts for exactly as long as it takes them to read the small print. Amsterdam is shocked by the shooting of a prison warden on a bustling restaurant terrace. In less shocking news, Dutch data centres are accused of hiding their impact on the environment and energy supplies. Tom Berendsen tries to mend fences with Israel after diplomats are expelled from the occupied West Bank. And we speak to the organisation representing Dutch nationals abroad about the campaign to allow dual nationality.

In a week of fire and fury, Donald Trump turns up the heat on the ICC, David van Weel is grilled on misleading crime figures and the CDA's former golden boy gets his fingers burned at 35,000ft. PFAS chemicals are leaking into the water supply from farmers' fields and firefighters' hoses. The high point of Groningen and Drenthe's winning bid to host the World Cycling Championships is a massive heap of rubbish. And the Dutch are itching to get back on Hyves as the original social media network gets a retro reboot.

Prinsjesdag was a day of sound and fury, with saboteurs disrupting the railways, protesters spray-painting the Royal route, and a King's speech signifying nothing but political paralysis. Rob Jetten's calls to the opposition to overcome their differences and back his budget fall on deaf ears as the rival flanks tell him to pick a side. A silent vigil is held in Rotterdam for a man who died while being arrested by police who wrongly accused him of stealing a fatbike. A 1700-year-old fragment of The Odyssey turns up in Utrecht. And in sport, Jutta Leerdam is taking a break from speed skating to spend more time on Instagram.

Budget Day promises to be full of drama this year as rising inflation and living costs put further pressure on the coalition parties. Freight traffic on inland waterways dropped to its lowest level during the summer drought, raising the stakes on climate change. Education experts sound the alarm over plunging standards of literacy among Dutch teenagers. American commentators breathe a sigh of relief as Botic van de Zandschulp's heroic run in the US Open ends. And can flying cars that cost €100,000 per wheel really take off in the Netherlands?

Rob Jetten’s hopes of doing a budget deal with the opposition are dashed when the three coalition parties can't agree who to bring on board. Villagers in Gelderland are caught in the crossfire of a deadly gang war when 30 armed men open fire at dawn. The RIVM warns that Dutch mosquitos are spreading West Nile virus after nine people fall ill. As the university year begins, students are still being charged illegal rents. And Nijmegen jumps at the chance to honour one of its most famous musical exports.

After seven years of gridlock, stalled negotiations, upturned flags and tractor protests, the government believes it has a solution to the nitrogen emissions problem. The coalition parties try frantically to garner opposition support for their autumn budget before the summer break. The deadly heatwave in June may have cost around 500 lives and scientists warn it will only get worse. Ronald Koeman exits stage left after Oranje depressingly predictable World Cup exit on penalties to Morocco. And in “is nothing sacred” news, the cabinet unveils plans for new, smaller ballot papers.

Week 27 by DutchNews

Children's rights were neglected and their well-being suffered during the coronavirus lockdowns, the inquiry into the pandemic is told this week. The Netherlands' first ever code red warning for weather is issued as day and night temperatures soar. Rob Jetten delivers a long awaited apology for treatment of Moluccan war veterans who fled post-colonial Indonesia. International students are at high risk of falling prey to fraudulent landlords. And in sport, Oranje breeze past Sweden to line up a potential needle match against Morocco at the men's football World Cup.

The Japanese emperor visits the national war memorial to commemorate the victims of his country's occupation of Indonesia. Over at the World Cup, Oranje do their bit for diplomatic relations by conceding a late equaliser to Japan in their opening game. Police believe a blast that destroyed a gym in Amsterdam was caused by cashpoint robbers making their own bombs. Explosives are also found at the site of a planned refugee centre that has been repeatedly targeted by extremists. And Limburg is struggling to keep out an influx of small furry invaders.