Dutch politics & Dobby

After almost 10 months (!!) of negotiations after our elections last March we finally have a new cabinet for our coalition government. It’s the fourth cabinet with Mark Rutte as prime minister (he’s been PM for 11 years now). The new cabinet was sworn in this past Monday. The official picture with our king in the middle front with Rutte next to him on the left had all the new ministers standing in a socially distanced position, which very much signifies the times we are living in now.

This evening we had our first Corona virus press conference with our new health minister, Ernst Kuipers, accompanying PM Rutte. During this pandemic Kuipers has already been a well known face on TV here, giving updates in the news on the situation in hospitals, but now as the new health minister, I saw him in action longer. Watching him during the press conference, it suddenly struck me: Ernst Kuipers reminds me of Dobby the elf from Harry Potter (minus the ears)!

It’s not a bad thing, I liked Dobby! Don’t have the same affinity for Mr. Kuipers yet, but maybe that will grow?

Meanwhile, we learned that some lockdown restrictions will be eased here, starting tomorrow. New reported Corona cases are still on the rise but hospitalizations are down, which is why this strategy is deemed possible. This pandemic still feels far from over.