A Dictionary of Dutchness

Nieuwjaartoespraak

New Year’s speeches (Nieuwjaarstoespraken) are traditionally used by company bosses, mayors and police chiefs to outline the coming year’s hopes, plans and targets. As such, they form a staple source of news stories in the first few days of the New Year when other news is thin on the ground. However, these speeches rarely contain anything earth- shattering and are rarely front-page news.