Friday 29 June 2007

Councillors guilty of conflict of interest
The national Labour party said today that it is considering taking action against Labour district councillors in Amsterdam Zuidoost found guilty of a conflict of interest after approving council subsidies for organisations they were involved in. Five of the seven involved in the affair are Labour councillors. More...

ABN Amro favourite employer with students
ABN Amro might be caught up an an international takeover battle, but it still remains the most popular employer among Dutch students, according to research by Intermediair magazine. In second and third place were Shell and KLM respectively. Consultancy remains the most popular employment sector.

June was warm, wet and gloomy
The average temperature in June (17.5 celsius) was over two degrees warmer than normal, making the month the fifth warmest since 1901, according to weather bureau KNMI. Rainfall was also heavy, varying from 150 mm in some areas to 45 mm in others. The sun shone for 165 hours, compared with an average of 192 hours.

One in five firms not smoke-free
One in five Dutch companies still don't meet laws on smoke-free workplaces which were introduced three years ago, according to a report by government inspectors published on Friday.

Over 100,000 sign Iraq inquiry petition
Over 100,000 people have signed a petition calling for a parliamentary inquiry into events surrounding Dutch support for the invasion of Iraq. More...

ING sells part of Belgian activities
ING is selling part of its Belgian insurance activities to P&V Verzekering for €750m, generating a book profit of €425m, the Dutch banking group said on Friday. The sale concerns those parts of the Belgian operation which go through agencies and intermediaries. ING Belgium will continue to offer products direct to consumers.

Banking union rejects Rabo pay offer
Union members at Rabobank have overwhelmingly rejected the bank's final pay offer. Rabobank is offering a 2% rise for the next two years, while other banks have offered closer to 3%, union FNV Bondgenoten said. The FNV wants an 8% rise spread over three years.

Row over refugee amnesty grows
A political row is developing over the refusal of some local councils to hand over information on illegal asylum-seekers to the justice ministry. More...

Thousands gather for Veterans' Day
Thousands of former service personnel gathered on in The Hague on Friday morning to mark Veterans' Day to honour the 140,000 soldiers who served in World War II, in Indonesia and on numerous peace-keeping missions. More...

Dutchman to head European energy users
Dutchman Hans Grünfeld is to be named as the new chairman of the European lobby organisation for industrial energy users IFIEC today. He will remain director of the Dutch association for commercial power uses, VEMW. The IFIEC represents 15 national organisations. Its aim is to strengthen the competitive position of energy-intensive industries. 'The lack of competition on European energy markets remains a structural problem for the energy-intensive industries. In particular there are concerns over the security of supplies, a lack of energy pricing data and the vertical integration of supply companies,' Grünfeld said in a statement.

Holiday traffic jams to start today
Motoring organisation ANWB says it expects the annual holiday rush hour to begin early on Friday afternoon and is warning motorists that storms and heavy rain are on the way. School holidays begin today in the south of the country.

Dutch economy to continue growing
The Dutch economy will continue to grow, leading to tensions on the labour market and an upward drive on wages, the government's economic policy unit CPB said on Friday. More...

'Linda de Mol almost bankrupt'
TV personality, publisher and actress Linda de Mol is 'almost out of money', claims the Telegraaf on Friday. De Mol, sister of media tycoon John de Mol, is currently embroiled in a complicated court case with the tax office over her non-payment of income tax while working for her brother's company Talpa.

Police sacked 113 officers last year
Over 200 police officers were sacked, suspended or quit the force in 2006 because of their involvement in crime or for neglecting their duties. Of these, 113 were fired outright and 42 left during an investigation, according to police figures. More...

Netherlands faces dual payment systems
Dutch companies and consumers will be faced with two rival payment systems for a number of years following the introduction of a new European standard from next year, the Financieele Dagblad reports. More...

Amusement park tax rise will hit visits
The Efteling amusement park will lose 400,000 visitors a year if the government goes ahead with plans to increase VAT on tickets from 6% to 19%, according to researchers at the University of Tilburg. More...

Makaay returns to Feyenoord
Striker Roy Makaay is to return to Dutch premier league football after four seasons playing for Germany’s Bayern Muncuh. Makaay (32) signed a four-year contract with Rotterdam club Feyenoord yesterday. He is the fourth major signing by Feyenoord in the last week.

Mayor refuses to hand over failed asylum seeker list
Hilversum mayor Ernst Bakker has refused to hand over a list of the asylum seekers who are not eligible for the recently granted general pardon to the justice minister. In an interview with today’s Volkskrant, Bakker says he sees such a move as a ‘betrayal’. More...

Thursday 28 June 2007

Junior minister cleared of wrongdoing
Junior finance minister Jan Kees de Jager has been largely cleared of wrongdoing by a committee set up to investigate working conditions at the company he ran before becoming minister. More...

Men must urinate sitting down
Men moving to the soon-to-be built residential area of Meerstad in Groningen will probably have to urinate sitting down because of plans to seperate urine and faeces at source. Toilets in the new homes will have two depositaries, allowing urine to be collected separately and used as fertiliser on nearly corn and rape seed oil fields. comments (1)

Netherlands is third-richest EU country
The Netherlands was the third richest country in the EU last year in terms of gross national product, according to the official Eurostat figures published today. Luxemburg and Ireland top the list. The average Dutch income is 31% above the EU average.

Krajicek through to Wimbledon third round
Michaëlla Krajicek is through to the third round of the Wimbledon tennis tournament following a convincing win over Britain’s Katie O'Brien in straight sets (6-0 6-1) on Thursday. Krajicek, who is seeded 31st, now faces the Russian Anna Tsjakvetadze.

Crown prince up for IOC re-election
Crown Prince Willem-Alexander is available for re-election to the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the state information service IND said on Thursday. More...

Internet telephony up 17% in first quarter
The number of Dutch internet callers rose 17% to over two million in the first quarter resulting in an almost total stagnation in the growth of traditional telephony, according to research bureau Telecompaper. More...

Dutch bad debts total €12bn
Some 2.5% of all open bills in the Netherlands will never be paid, losing the country €12bn, according to a European survey by debt collectors Intrum Justitia. The European average for non-payers is 1.8%. The best payers are the Finns (less than 1%) and the worst are the Czechs (3.5%).

Iran trade mission: no regrets say firms
The 10 firms that took part in the controversial trade mission to Iran have no regrets although the political uproar over the visit resulted in one bourse listed company to pull out of the trip, reports news agency ANP. More...

Bosshardt funeral live on tv
Saturday's funeral procession and church service for the Salvation Army's 'Major' Bosshardt is to be broadcast live on television. Bosshardt, who died on Monday at the age of 94, was highly respected for her work with prostitutes, the homeless and drug addicts in Amsterdam's red light district.

MPs back anti-drug spray in schools
A majority of MPs support the use of a special spray in secondary schools which can be used to identify drug users. Justice minister Ernst Hirsch Ballin told MPs on Wednesday his department is investigating whether the spray actually works and its legal implications. More...

PGGM to list responsible investments only
Health service pension fund PGGM is to make sure all the companies it invests in operate responsible policies on the environment, social conditions and corporate strategy. The fund, which represents some two million people, is to publish a list of all its investments this summer. More...

Paraffin beach clean-up begins
Government workers today started clearing up balls of paraffin wax which have been washed up over 100 km of Holland's beaches from Bergen to the island of Texel. The clean-up is expected to take two days.

DSM to improve vitamin profits
Chemicals and pharmaceuticals group DSM wants to improve the profitability of its vitamin unit by €100m through a combination of cost cutting and better sales, the company said on Thursday. The company is to invest an estimated €40m in the profit-boosting programme which will run until the end of 2009.

Antonov in talks with Chinese gear maker
Gear systems maker Antonov is in talks with a second Chinese manufacturer on a production deal, the Rotterdam-based company said on Thursday. More...

Bos ups pressure on US on bank privacy
American authorities have approached Dutch financial institutions directly for information relating to anti-terrorism investigations, rather than going through official channels, in at least four cases, finance minister Wouter Bos told MPs on Tuesday. More...

Carlyle postpones Amsterdam IPO
US venture capital group Carlyle has scrapped the Amsterdam IPO for its Carlyle Capital Corporation fund which was planned for Thursday morning, the Financieele Dagblad reports. More...

Finance minister cleared of wrongdoing
Junior finance minister Jan Kees de Jager did not break labour laws or work against the setting up of a works council during his time as owner and director of software firm ISM, according to a committee set up by De Jager himself to investigated the allegations. More...

FD journalist to lead shareholders lobby
The Financieele Dagblad's London correspondent Jan Maarten Slagter has been appointed new chairman of the shareholders lobby group VEB. Slagter, 37, replaces Peter-Paul de Vries who led the organisation for 18 years.

Armed robberies on shops up 12%
The number of armed robberies on Dutch shops rose 12% in the first five months of this year to 323. The increase is strongest in the big cities. More...

Employment summit 'a success'
Ministers, employers and unions yesterday reached broad agreement on helping 200,000 long-term unemployed people find jobs. The target was set down in the coalition accord earlier this year. More...

Dutch students happy with 6 out of 10
Two-thirds of Dutch university and college students do not put any effort into trying to get top marks in their exams and are happy with six out of 10, according to a European research project coordinated by the University of Maastricht. More...

Wednesday 27 June 2007

No deal on redundancy at employment summit
Ministers, employers and union officials will not try to reach a deal on amending redundancy legislation law during Wednesday afternoon's employment summit although the issue will be on the agenda, news agency ANP reported. More...

Court rules against compulsory soot filter
The Netherlands cannot unilaterally force all new diesel vehicles to be fitted with special diesel particulate filters which remove soot from exhaust gas, the European Court ruled on Wednesday. The government wanted to make the filters compulsory last year but was stopped by the European Commission which ruled such a move is against free market principles.

No counter bid made for Stork
Engineering group Stork said on Wednesday it has not received notice of a counter bid following yesterday's $1.5bn offer from UK investment house Candover. More...

Murdered woman had reported ex to police
The Alkmaar woman shot dead by her ex-husband at the town's railway station on Monday had twice reported him to the police for domestic violence and stalking, it emerged on Wednesday. Alkmaar mayor Piet Bruinooge said investigations at the time failed to determine that the man had committed a criminal offence.

Rotterdam criticised for high expenditure
Rotterdam council has been heavily criticised by the city auditor for spending €158m on external advisers, interim managers and IT experts in 2005. Five years earlier the city spent €41m on outside advice. The auditor said the results of so much extra help on the council's operations was 'thin'.

Van Bronckhorst back to Feyenoord
Footballer Giovanni van Bronckhorst is to return to his former club Feyenoord after four years at Barcelona on a free transfer. The Rotterdam club has signed the Dutch international for three years. He will join other big new signing Tim de Cler. Roy Makaay is also rumoured to be on his way to Feyenoord.

Ex-ministers not charged over Fortuyn
The justice ministry has decided not to begin a criminal case against ministers responsible for the security of Pim Fortuyn, the public prosecution department said on Wednesday. More...

Farming income rises in 2006
The income of an average Dutch farm rose to €68,000 last year but 30% of farmers earned less than €25,000 according to new figures from sector institute LEI. More...

Whistleblowing MEP may join ChristenUnie
Former EU whistleblower and current MEP Paul van Buitenen is considering switching to the orthodox Christian party ChristenUnie. Accountant Van Buitenen, whose revelations led to the fall of the European Commission in 1999, was elected to the Brussels parliament in 2004 for the Europa Transparant party.

Krajicek through to Wimbledon round 2
Michaëlla Krajicek takes on English number one Katie O'Brien on court 13 in the second round of the Wimbledon tennis tournament on Wednesday afternoon. Kraijcek beat Israel's Tzipora Obziler 6-2, 6-7, 6-1 on Monday.

Holland has nearly 1,400 centenarians
The number of people over a hundred years old in the Netherlands has risen sharply and now stands at almost 1,400 according to new figures from the national statistics office CBS. More...

Cabinet suspends use of cluster bombs
The cabinet has decided to suspend the use of cluster bombs by the Dutch army, foreign affairs minister Maxime Verhagen told MPs on Tuesday. But the cabinet does not want to ban cluster bombs altogether and feels they could be used in certain circumstances, Verhagen said. More...

Wind power tripled in five years
Dutch wind power production has increased tripled since 2001 to 1,500 megawatts, according to national statistics office CBS. Although the number of turbines had fallen to 1,828 by the end of 2006, the generation capacity of the average unit has risen.

MPs reject anonymous job applications
A proposal to allow anonymous applications for national civil service jobs has been rejected by a large parliamentary majority. More...

Dutch patent law simplified, made cheaper
It will be easier and cheaper for Dutch and foreign firms to apply for a patent in the Netherlands under the proposed new patent law, economic affairs minister Maria van der Hoeven told MPs. Parliament is due to vote on the new law, which will also allow firms to apply for a 20-year patent in English, next week.

Gambling watchdog wants rules for poker
The Dutch gambling board has advised the justice ministry to treat poker in the same way as bingo and allow games to be organised outside state-run casinos. At the moment it is illegal to play poker on the internet or in clubs and cafés. Bingo can be played in cafés as long as the game has been registered in advance with the local council and total prizes are valued at no more than €1,400.

Illegal wood found at top timber yards
At least four of the Netherlands' biggest timber merchants are importing illegally sourced wood from Cameron, Dutch and French environmental organisations said on Tuesday. More...

WWII bomb made safe in Eindhoven
Some 90 homes and an old people’s complex in Eindhoven were evacuated on Wednesday morning and a local primary school was closed while an old bomb from the WWII was made safe, reports ANP. More...

John de Mol axes TV station Tien
The TV station Tien – which has the exclusive rights to show Dutch premier division football – is to be axed this summer after two years on air. Media tycoon John de Mol who set up and owns Talpa, the company that operates the channel, has signed a deal with RTL. More...

Tuesday 26 June 2007

Top Dutch students low on OECD rankings
The best Dutch students score lower in skills tests than their international counterparts according to a report published by the economic policy bureau CPB today. More...

Share prices fall on LaSalle announcement (UPDATE)
ABN Amro does not need shareholder permission to sell its LaSalle unit to Bank of America, High Court advocate general Vino Timmermans said on Tuesday morning. The advocate general's conclusions are adopted by the court in around 75% of cases. More...

Utrecht leads traffic jam growth
The region around Utrecht saw the sharpest growth in traffic jams this spring with a 17% increase, motoring organisation ANWB said on Tuesday. Nationwide, the jam index (length of congested traffic multiplied by how long the jam lasts) was up 8% in the morning and 14% in the evening rush hour, the ANWB said.

Electronic patient files not before 2009
Government plans to introduce a centralised electronic system for patient records cannot be achieved in 2009 as hoped, according to research by Ernst & Young and Doxis. More...

Culture minister wants more cash for public tv
Public broadcasters need extra funding to restore the balance in their programming, culture minister Ronald Plasterk told MPs on Tuesday. The minister is to present his plans for the public broadcasting sector to parliament in September.

Sex boss in talks to sell red light property
One of the biggest sex industry bosses in Amsterdam is in talks with housing corporation Het Oosten about selling his 20 properties in the city's red light district. More...

Asparagus season ends, farmers happy
Farmers say they are satisfied with this year’s asparagus season which resulted in the auction of six million kilos of asparagus, slightly higher than last year’s 5.9 million kilos. More...

Consumer confidence almost at 7-year high
Consumer confidence has almost reached a seven-year high this month, with a five-point gain on May, the national statistics office CBS said on Tuesday. More...

Zalm gets part-time DSB Bank job
Former finance minister Gerrit Zalm has been appointed ‘chief economist’ at the DSB Bank for two days a week. With 12 years in the job, Zalm was the longest serving Dutch finance minister. More...

Minister backs Schiphol flight plan
The transport and environment ministers Camiel Eurlings and Jacqueline Cramer back plans to increase flights to and from Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport beyond an earlier agreement, Eurlings told MPs on Monday. More...

Princess Alexia celebrates second birthday
Princess Alexia, the second daughter of crown prince Willem Alexander and princess Maxima, celebrates her second birthday today with a house full of royal photographers. More...

Tributes flood in for 'Major' Bosshardt
The Salvation Army's ‘Major’ Bosshardt, who devoted her life to helping the homeless, prostitutes and addicts in Amsterdam’s red light district, died at home on Monday at the age of 94. More... comments (1)

Support for EU referendum grows
Labour (PvdA) MPs support calls for a referendum on the new EU treaty, the Telegraaf reports on Tuesday. The paper says there is now a parliamentary majority for a vote. The PvdA is part of the government coalition. More...

LaSalle sale can go ahead: court advisor
ABN Amro does not need shareholder permission to sell its LaSalle unit to Bank of America, High Court advocate general Vino Timmermans said on Tuesday morning. The advocate general's conclusions are adopted by the court in around 75% of cases. More...

Taskforce to get more women into work
A taskforce to increase women’s participation in the labour market is to be set up on January 1, reports Tuesday’s Financieele Dagblad. At present only 54% of women in the Netherlands work and 70% of them have part time jobs – the latter is the highest percentage in the world. More...

Nutreco expands production in Norway
Animal and fish feed manufacturer Nutreco is to invest €24m expanding capacity at its Averoy factory in Norway. Production will increase by 25% to 240,000 tons a year, with possible further expansion by 100,000 tons.

Candover makes €1.5bn bid for Stork
British private investment group Candover has made a €1.5bn offer for Dutch engineering group Stork. The bid is supported by Stork managment and the supervisory board, as well as major shareholders Centaurus and Paulson. More...

Monday 25 June 2007

Employers draw up job creation plan
If every Dutch company with a workforce of over 50 took on one long-term unemployed person every year, 200,000 people would have a job within three years, employers organisation VNO-NCW said on Monday. More...

One dead in Alkmaar railway shooting
Police have confirmed that one person was killed and another seriously injured during a shooting incident at Alkmaar railway station on Monday morning. More...

Existing buildings can use 30% less energy
A 30% saving in energy consumption is a year is possible say power companies, housing corporations and construction firms in a report presented to the environment minister today. More... comments (1)

Fewer Dutch with dual nationality
The number of people with double nationalities has fallen over the past four years, largely because fewer people are opting to become Dutch through naturalisation, according to national statistics office CBS. More...

Breastfeeding more popular
Three out of four babies were breastfed last year, compared with two out of three at the beginning of the 1990s, says national statistics office CBS. Older and better educated mothers are more likely to feed their babies for longer, the CBS said.

One in five students is from ethnic minority
People with an ethnic minority background now account for over 20% of higher education students, national statistics office CBS said on Monday. The proportion of minority students has doubled over the past 12 years.

Alkmaar station closed after shooting
Alkmaar railway station has been evacuated by police following a shooting incident just before 11am, reports ANP. The police have confirmed the report but were unable to give further information. More to follow.

Cabinet is 'ignoring' cheap CO2 solutions
The government could save €5bn a year if it goes for the most efficient ways to reduce greenhouse gases, reports Monday’s Financieele Dagblad. More...

Four Dutchmen in Tour de France team
There are just four Dutchmen in Rabobank's nine-strong cycling team for this year's Tour de France. Thomas Dekker, Bram de Groot, Pieter Weening and Michael Boogerd join other riders from Spain, Germany, Russia and Denmark. The Tour de France begins in London on July 7.

Aids gala raises €780,000
The 15th AmsterdamDiner, a fundraising event for Aids projects in Africa, raised €780,000 on Saturday night, almost double last year's total. The guest list included prince Friso and princess Mabel, tattoo king Henk Schiffmacher, artist Ans Markus and politicians Wouter Bos and Rita Verdonk.

Marel interested in Stork Food Systems
Icelandic food industry machinery maker Marel has been forced to admit it is interested in taking over the food systems unit at Dutch engineering group Stork. Stork said last week it was in talks with UK private equity house Candover about a bourse exit. More...

'Akzo may up ICI bid'
Akzo Nobel is looking for bank and investor support to bring out a higher bid for UK chemicals group ICI, sources have told the Financieele Dagblad. More...

Britain investigates watery Dutch chicken
Britiain's Food Standards Agency (FSA) has begun an inquiry into 63,000 tons of poultry imported from the Netherlands which contained up to 35% water, the Times reports on Monday. More...

Mixed reactions to Brussels deal
Dutch reactions to the new European treaty range from 'good for the Netherlands' to a 'betrayal of Dutch interests' but there is no parliamentary majority for a new referendum, ANP reports on Monday. More...

Films arrive in US, 34 years too late
Boxes containing educational films about the Netherlands have arrived back in the US town of Holland, 34 years after being borrowed by two American universities. More...

Sunday 24 June 2007

Young Dutch keep European soccer title
The Netherlands won their second consecutive European Under-21 title on Saturday with a 4-1 win over Serbia. Serbia were down to 10 men after a sending-off in the 62nd minute. More...

Saturday 23 June 2007

EU treaty closes 'chapter on constitution'
The new EU treaty agreed by ministers after a marathon sitting will allow the Netherlands and Europe to move on and 'closes the chapter on the constitution', prime minister Jan Peter Balkenende said this morning. More...

Friday 22 June 2007

Dutch ‘no comment’ on competition deal
Prime minister Jan Peter Balkenende had 30 minutes of face-to-face talks with German chancellor Angela Merkel on Friday, as efforts continued to break the deadlock over a new European treaty. More... comments (1)

Hairdresser stabs customer with scissors
A hairdresser in Amsterdam has been arrested for stabbing a customer with his scissors in a row over a pair of glasses. The same hairdresser stabbed and killed another customer seven years ago but did not face legal charges because it was in self-defence, ANP reported.

Suzanne murder trial begins
The trial began on Friday of Henk van D, accused of raping and murdering 12-year-old schoolgirl Suzanne at the end of last year. More...

Children in care smoke more
Children in the youth care system smoke more cannabis more frequently than others in the same age group, according to research by the Jellinek addiction clinic. More...

Small firms want cash for tax office blunder
Small firm lobby group MKB-Nederland wants the government to agree to €500 compensation per company for the extra work caused by software problems at the tax office. More...

Donner denies golden handshake plans
Social affairs minister Piet Hein Donner wants an open discussion over redundancy laws with unions and employers at the summit planned for next Wednesday, he told MPs during Thursday night's emergency parliamentary debate. More...

Martinair scraps European services
Charter airline Martinair is to scrap its 34 internal European services, leading to what unions claim could be up to 650 job losses. More...

Background check law may cover property firms
The cabinet is considering introducing integrity tests for entrpreneurs in the property and temporary employment sectors, the Financieele Dagblad reports on Friday. . More...

Veldkamp to coach US speed skaters
Former Dutch speed skater Bart Veldkamp is the new coach of the US speed skating team and plans to completely turn it around. 'The team will have very good management, a dietician, physiologist, physiotherapist, sports psychologists and doctors,' Veldkamp says.

Crime hotline leads to arrests
One-in-10 tip-offs to the anonymous crime hotline Meld Misdaad Anoniem results in an arrest, the foundation running the service says. More...

SNS Reaal sets share issue price
SNS Reaal has set the price of its new share issue at €16.50, meaning the issue is likely to raise around €350m. The proceeds will be used to partly pay for the €1.75bn cash takeover of Axa's Dutch insurance activities.

Hagemeyer chairman to quit
Hagemeyer chairman Rudi de Becker is to leave the technical goods trading group next year to spend more time with his family. De Becker, 60, has been in the job for four years.

Skilled migrants' families to get priority
The immigration service (IND) is to streamline the admission of family members of high-skilled migrants (kennismigranten), cutting their wait to enter the country from several months down to two weeks, justice minister Nebahat Albayrak told parliament on Friday. More...

Lorries to get traffic light priority
Lorries and buses are to be given priority over other vehicles at traffic lights on some roads in South Holland because the main roads are rapidly choking with traffic. More...

Fortis says no forced job losses at ABN Amro
Fortis has confirmed that there will be no compulsory redundancies at ABN Amro's Dutch operations if the consortium which wants to take over ABN Amro succeeds. More...

Consortium formal bid for ABN Amro in July
The consortium of three banks fighting to take over ABN Amro will launch a formal bid in mid-July. The trio, led by Royal Bank of Scotland, said in May they planned to offer over €71bn for the Dutch banking group. More...

'Dutch reputation at stake over LaSalle sale'
The Netherlands' reputation as a trustworthy trading partner is at stake in the ABN Amro court case, Bank of America's CFO Joe Price is quoted as saying in today's Financieele Dagblad. More...

First day of summit 'business-like' says PM
The first round of the EU summit in Brussels was 'extremely business-like,' prime minister Jan Peter Balkenende told news agency ANP. More...

Thursday 21 June 2007

Transport chipcard gets go-ahead
The test phase of the OV-chipkaart, a credit card-sized replacement for all public transport tickets, has been successfully completed in Rotterdam, the city's RET transport company announced Thursday. More...

Father shot outside primary school
A man was shot dead outside the Berg en Bos junior school in Apeldoorn on Thursday morning after dropping his six-year-old child off, writes ANP. More... comments (1)

Porn star is most popular sat nav voice
The voice of Dutch porn star Kim Holland is the most popular customisation of the Tom Tom in-car sat-nav system downloaded from Navigatiestemmen.nl web site, reports tech-lifestyle magazine Bright. More...

Strawberry Frog in takeover talks
Amsterdam advertising agency Strawberry Frog is in talks with a number of parties, including Publicis Groupe and at least one private equity firm, about a possible takeover, CEO Scott Goodson tells Adweek.

Former Organon R&D head goes it alone
Former head of Organon R&D Herjan Coelingh Bennink has set up a new pharmaceuticals company, Pantarhei Bioscience, with former Ahold CFO Michiel Meurs as financial director, the Financieele Dagblad reports.

Tax office IT failure forces massive refiling
Some 400,000 companies will have to resubmit payroll details to the tax office because of software problems, NOS reports on Thursday. More...

Landis systematically misled investors: receivers
Bankrupt IT company Landis systematically published wrong profit and sales figures, misleading investors, creditors and banks on a massive scale, according to the firm's official receivers, reports today's Financieele Dagblad. More...

City repeats ‘no circus animals’ request
Amsterdam has repeated a request to the farming and nature ministry to allow it to ban the use of live animals in circuses, pending a national decision of the issue. The request came in a letter from mayor Job Cohen to minister Gerda Verburg.

'Bait’ bike lost already
A bike fitted with a hidden transmitter and used as ‘bait’ by police in Nijmegen to catch thieves has disappeared, just two weeks after being put into action. More...

Dutch expect 'tough talks' at EU summit
The Dutch delegation to the Brussels summit aimed at kickstarting the process of developing an EU constitution is expecting two days of difficult discussions. More... comments (1)

Emergency debate on golden handshakes
MPs are to hold an emergency debate this evening on the growing row over ministers' plans to change redundancy rules. More...

Jong Oranje reach soccer final
The Dutch Under-21 football team will meet Serbia in the European final on Saturday after beating England in a thrilling 13-12 penalty shootout last night. More... comments (2)

Dutch may join Manhunt 2 ban
Labour (PvdA) MPs have called for a Dutch ban on the sale of Manhunt 2, a computer game due for release next month that has already been banned in the UK and Ireland for its sadistic content. More...

Golden Noose goes to 10th woman
Roel Janssen has won this year's Golden Noose award for De Tiende Vrouw (the 10th woman). The prize, worth €10,000 is awarded every year to the writer of the best thriller or crime novel.

Columnist and PvdA idealogue Bart Tromp dies
Columnist and Amsterdam University professor Bart Tromp has died unexpectedly at the age of 62. Tromp was known for his strong opinions, such as his opposition to the war in Iraq, and in 2001 made a bid for the Labour (PvdA) party leadership.

'Hero' biologist jailed in Brazil
Dutch biologist Marc van Roosmalen has been jailed for 14 years in Brazil for 'stealing apes' after non-registered orphan monkeys were found at his house in the Amazon region. More... comments (5)

Pro-animal MPs pose dozens of questions
The farming ministry had to deal with 125 MPs' questions during the first five months of the new government, compared with 37 in the same period last year, thanks to the arrival in parliament of the animal rights party PvdD. So far it has cost €250,000 to answer the questions, farm minister Gerda Verburg said.

Wednesday 20 June 2007

Economy is blooming, says central bank
The Dutch economy is set to grow by between 2.5% and 3% up to the end of 2009, the central bank (DNB) says in its latest quarterly statement. More...

Lidy Hartemink is female manager of 2007
Univé's health insurance chief Lidy Hartemink has been named female manager of the year by a gathering of her peers,celebrating Female Managers Day at the Hilton Hotel in Soestduinen. The jury praised her 'consistent leadership' and emphasis on communication and teamwork.

Krajicek qualifies for Wimbledon
Michaëlla Krajicek has qualified for a place at the Wimbledon tennis tournament in London. Krajicek, ranged 33rd in the world, got the 32nd Wimbledon spot following the withdrawal of Russian player Vera Zvonareva. Her half-brother Richard won the Wimbledon mens singles title in 1996.

Pupils positive about community service
Six out of 10 secondary school pupils are positive about the introduction of a compulsory three-month community service placement for all pupils. More...

High failure rate for corporate IT projects
At least half of IT projects launched by corporate Holland fail totally or in part, according to the latest ICT Barometer from Ernst & Young. More... comments (1)

Holland can become energy exporter
So many new power stations are planned for the Netherlands over the next five years that the country could become a net power exporter, says national grid company Tennet. It expects electricity production to rise by 35%.

Backpack gunman hands himself in
The man suspected of Monday's triple shooting in central Melbourne - in which a Dutch tourist was shot three times - has handed himself in to Victoria police. More... comments (2)

Heroin addicts 'a dying breed'
Heroin addicts in the Netherlands are a dying breed, according to drugs monitoring institute Trimbos in today's AD. More... comments (3)

Maths failed by 25% of trainee teachers
A quarter of first-year students at primary school teacher training colleges (pabo) have to quit because their arithmetic skills are not up to scratch. More...

Rien van Gendt voted top philanthropist
The readers of philanthropic management magazine FM have voted Rien van Gendt most influential philanthropist of the year. FM said Van Gendt, CEO of packaging company Van Leer, was a 'bridge builder between asset management and good causes.

Máxima 'more emotional' due to children
Princess Máxima has become more emotional in her reaction to poverty since having children, she says in an interview with magazine Onze Wereld. More... comments (1)

Café bosses will not be 'no smoking' police
Café and restaurant owners have asked health minister Ab Klink who is going to police the smoking ban which comes into force next summer. While cafés and bars will hang up 'no smoking' signs, it is up to the minister to enforce the law, hospitality industry body Horeca Nederland says in today's Telegraaf newspaper.

US embassy move a step nearer
The Hague city council has approved the procedures for moving the American embassy to a new, more secure location in Wassenaar. More...

Auditor slams high speed train project
The transport ministry has been heavily criticised in an audit office report into its management of the high-speed rail link (HSL) to Brussels. More...

British buyout firm targets Stork
British buyout firm Candover has made a €1.46bn offer for Dutch engineering group Stork. More...

Court to rule on lottery loser
Judges in Amsterdam will today rule on the case of a woman who claims she has suffered psychological damage by not winning the postcode lottery last year. More...

Cabinet agrees to cut golden handshakes
Ministers have reached agreement on reducing cash payouts to workers who are made redundant, Dutch newspapers report on Wednesday. More...

Tuesday 19 June 2007

SER to report on worker policy role
The cabinet has asked its social and economic policy advisory body SER to look at giving workers more say over corporate policy. More...

Round table talks will include redundancy
Ministers, unions and employers are to hold their long-awaited round table talks next Wednesday and redundancy rules will be on the agenda. Social affairs minister Piet Hein Donner made the surprise announcement on Tuesday. More...

Unemployment hits four year low
The Dutch official unemployment rate fell to a four-year low of 4.7% in the period March to May, compared with 5% between February and April, says national statistics office CBS. More...

Air France-KLM confirms talks with VLM
Air France-KLM confirms it is in talks with Belgian airline VLM, news agency ANP reported on Tuesday. However, a spokesman told the news agency it was too premature to talk of merger plans. More...

Dutch pensioner killed in Finland
A 75-year-old Dutch tourist has been stabbed to death in Finland. The incident happened in a department store in Porvoo, about 50 km north of Helsinki.

Vultures spotted in Brabant
A number of griffon vultures have been spotted around the towns of Massdonk and Oss in Brabant province, birdwatching websites report on Tuesday. More...

Prevention better than cure, minister told
Preventative measures which reduce the likelihood of patients developing chronic conditions should be included in the basic healthcare insurance package, the health insurance board CVZ is set to tell health minister Ab Klink. More...

Dutch backpacker shot in Australia
A Dutch backpacker has been shot and seriously injured by a gunman in Melbourne's central business district. More... comments (4)

Integration course quality mark popular
More than 120 schools, companies and other organisations have applied to be awarded an integration course quality mark, says the Blik op Werk foundation which administers the seal of approval. More... comments (1)

ING buys Turkish bank for €2bn
ING is taking over Turkey's Oyak Bank for €2bn, the Dutch financial services group said on Tuesday. More...

Uni-Invest cancels IPO
Property fund Uni-Invest has cancelled its Amsterdam IPO, citing uncertain market conditions. More...

Bid made for remaining Endemol shares
Edam Acquisition, the consortium made up partly of John de Mol and Italian group Mediaset, has made a bid for the 25% of shares in Endemol which it does not already own. More...

KPN boosts mobile market share
KPN increased its share of the Dutch mobile phone market from 46% to 48% in the first three months of this year, compared with the year-earlier period, according to research group Telecompaper. More...

MPs debate ministers' action plan
MPs today debate the government's 74-point action plan, drawn up after ministers' 100-day tour of the country to gauge public opinion. The plan was heavily criticised when unveiled last week for being too vague and lacking concrete measures.

Serious police corruption probe launched
An investigation has begun into a 'very serious' case of corruption within the national detective squad, the Telegraaf reports on Tuesday. More...

Monday 18 June 2007

Griffon vultures head for Holland
Dozens of griffon vultures with wingspans of up to 2.80 metres were spotted in the south of the Netherlands on Monday. The first sightings were made around lunchtime in Tilburg, IJsendijk and Terneuzen. More... comments (3)

Soldiers cleared of Iraq torture claims
Dutch soldiers did not torture Iraqi prisoners in early 2003 but did make mistakes during the interrogation process, according to two official reports published on Monday. More...

Fewer patent applications, more success
Dutch inventors submitted 7,327 applications to the European patent office last year, over 400 fewer than in 2005. More...

Another soldier killed in Afghanistan
A 44-year-old Dutch soldier was killed and three were injured in fighting close to the Afghan city of Chora in Uruzgan province on Monday, the defence ministry said. More...

Workers given 23kg maximum load
Workers are not allowed to pick up more than 23kg without mechanical aids, the high court ruled on Monday. More... comments (1)

EU ready to help Dutch on pensions
The European parliament is prepared to amend a draft European pension law to stop Dutch pension capital flowing into other EU countries, Christian Democrat MEP Ria Oomen-Ruijten told ANP on Monday. Earlier this month, social affairs minister Piet-Hein Donner threatened to veto the legislation unless changes are made.

ING buys Korean asset manager
ING is taking over Korean asset manager Landmark. Financial details were not disclosed but Landmark has some €6.9bn under management.

Flower auction merger 'at risk"
The Financieele Dagblad reports that flower export companies are threatening to go to the competition authority NMa unless they have a say on the planned merger between the country's two biggest flower auction houses, Bloemenveiling Aalsmeer and Flora Holland. More...

Dutch soldiers cleared of Iraq torture
Dutch soldiers did not torture Iraqi prisoners in early 2003, according to two official reports published on Monday. More... comments (1)

ICI rejects Akzo Nobel approaches
British chemicals group ICI has turned down a takeover approach from Akzo Nobel, the Dutch company said on Monday. More...

First freight train uses Betuwelijn railway
An empty goods train became the first to use the long-awaited freight-only Betuwelijn railway on Monday morning. More...

Anonymous crime reports on the cards
Ministers are working on plans to allow the victims of certain types of crimes, such as intimidation, to make anonymous complaints to the police, the Telegraaf reports on Monday. The aim is to make sure such crimes do not go unpunished, the paper says.

Opposition grows to Uruzgan mission
Almost 50% of the Dutch are opposed to extending the Dutch mission in Afghanistan beyond August 2008, according to a poll for the Wegener newspaper group. More...

Free public transport for some commuters
The transport ministry is backing nine experiments to give certain commuters in rush-hour hot spots free public transport, a spokesman confirmed on Monday. More...

Afghan mission at risk, says Dutch general
The NATO mission in Afghanistan is in danger of failing because of a shortage of helicopters, Dutch major general Freek Meulman says in an interview in Monday's Trouw. More...

New EU treaty unlikely, says Verhagen
It is now unlikely that there will be a new European constitution, but a revisionary document to amend existing treaties as suggested by the Netherlands, according to Dutch foreign minister Maxime Verhagen. More...

Friday 15 June 2007

Dutch soldier, children killed by suicide bomb
A 20-year-old Dutch soldier and at least five Afghan children were killed in a suicide car bomb attack in central Tarin Kowt, close to the Dutch military base on Friday. More... comments (1)

Telegraaf Madeleine tip a dead end
Portuguese police said on Friday that they had failed to find any sign of missing British toddler Madeleine McCann at the site indicated in an anonymous letter sent to Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf. More...

Three years jail for Schiphol fire starter
A Haarlem court has found 25-year-old Libyan Ahmed al-J. guilty of starting the fatal fire in a deportation cell complex in Schiphol-Oost in October 2005 and sentenced him to three years in jail. More...

Disappointment greets cabinet action plan
'Vague targets and lack of concrete measures' sums up Friday's disappointed reactions to the cabinet’s plans to spend €10bn on new initiatives and tax cuts. More...

Internet pharmacies often break the law
Owners of Dutch medicine web sites are breaking the law by not having the necessary drug law permits, exporting illegal medicines or not carrying out proper consultations with patients, says the Volkskrant newspaper More...

AMC success in human gene therapy
Researchers at Amsterdam University's teaching hospital AMC have carried out one of the first successful experiments in gene therapy on humans, reports the Volkskrant newspaper on Friday. More... comments (1)

Refugee wrongly deported, can return
An asylum seeker from Cameroon who was deported in March, is to be allowed to return to the Netherlands because he falls under the government's amnesty for long-term refugees. The immigration service had been told to suspend deportations while details of the amnesty were being worked out.

Royal nanny sets up own business
The former nanny to the princesses Amalia, Alexia and Ariane is setting up her own nanny business, targetting celebrities, the rich and the titled. Hansje Görtz, who worked for crown prince Willem Alexander and princess Mäxima for 2.5 years, includes etiquette and security issues in her nanny training package.

Bank of America postpones ABN Amro lawsuit
Bank of America has postponed its lawsuit against ABN Amro, the Financial Times reports on Friday. More...

Getronics sells Spanish activities
IT group Getronics is selling its activities in Spain and Portugal to Spanish group Tecnocom for €95m. Getronics said on Friday it expects to post a book loss of betewen €15m and €30m on the deal.

SNS Reaal to take over FBS
SNS Reaal is in exclusive talks to take over stockbrokers FBS. SNS says the takeover will strengthen its position on the Dutch market. FBS, a subsidiary of the VVAA group, booked turnover of nearly €10m last year. The company offers investment services to institutional and private investors.

Two bits short of a puzzle
The Telegraaf newspaper reports today on the 73-year-old woman from the Brabant town of Bakel who has just spent eight months working on a 18,240 jigsaw puzzle only to find the last two pieces missing. More... comments (1)

Den Haag: low congestion by 2009
Den Haag city council voted in favour of a revised traffic circulation plan on Friday morning designed to reduce congestion in the city centre. More...

Damage after extreme weather
The exceptionally heavy rain on Thursday night has caused damage around the country, with the Drenthe town of Hoogeveen particularly badly hit. More...

Thursday 14 June 2007

Ministers present €7bn action plan
The cabinet on Thursday unveiled a 74-point plan to put government strategy into action. The initiatives were drawn up following ministers’ 100-day tour of the country to gather public opinion. More...

Compromise on niqaab-wearning student
A Groningen law student, who wears a face-covering niqaab, will be able to sit her exams if she first proves her identity to a female supervisor, the university authorities have agreed. The university earlier said the student would not be able to take her exams.

Fortis says no ABN forced redundancies
There will be no compulsory redundancies in the Netherlands if Fortis' joint bid for the entire ABN Amro banking group succeeds, chairman Jean-Paul Votron said on RTL-Z television. More... comments (1)

Video game rules to Level 2?
Justice Minister Ernst Hirsch Ballin wants stronger rules governing violence in video games, having ‘lost patience with self-regulation and the promises of game sellers and makers. More...

Arrests as disco brawl escalates
A mass brawl in Amsterdam’s Rembrandtplein nightlife hotspot on Wednesday night ended in the arrest of three women and nine men, ANP reports. More...

Postal unions accept TNT job losses
Postal unions say they accept that over 6,000 jobs will have to go at TNT. 'Otherwise the risk is too great that the company will run into trouble,' Abvakabo spokeswoman Anneke Stevens told ANP. More...

Heath insurance consolidation continues
Health insurer Achmea plans to take over sector peer Agis to create the country's biggest health insurance company. More...

EU warns Dutch over secondment rules
The EU’s employment commissioner Vladimir Spidla rapped the Netherlands on the knuckles on Wednesday for not complying properly with EU regulations on temporary, seconded workers. More... comments (1)

TV guide monopoly to end
Parliament has voted by a narrow margin to force all public broadcasters to make their programme scheduling information available to anyone, thereby ending the broadcasters’ monopoly on TV guides. More...

Orange youngsters not so green
The Dutch Under-21 football team qualified for next year’s Olympic Games on Wednesday night after beating Portugal 2-1 in Groningen. More...

Mothers more often 'kidnap' their offspring
Two thirds of the 140 children taken each year by a parent to a foreign country were taken by their mothers, says the centre monitoring cross-border kidnapping involving Dutch children or parents. More...

Carice van Houten to play Tom Cruise's wife
Actrice Carice van Houten who received international praise for her role in Paul Verhoeven's Zwartboek, is to play the wife of Tom Cruise in Bryan Singer's new thriller Valkyrie. The film tells the true story of an attempt to kill Adolf Hitler during WWII. Van Houten is also busy with two other English-language film roles.

Small business boss has 45 jobs
Loek Hermans, who was appointed a senator in the upper house of parliament on Tuesday, has been reappointed chairman of small business association MKB. According to website parlement.com, Hermans also has 43 other jobs - ranging from 'advisor' to Ernst&Young to membership of the supervisory board at Friesland Bank.

Bos defends financial watchdog pay
Finance minister Wouter Bos has defended the €270,000 salary being paid to the new head of the financial services watchdog as 'acceptable' seeing as he would be able to earn at least €120,000 more in the private sector. More...

Cabinet ready with plan of action
The cabinet this afternoon presents its long-awaited plan of action for the coming years, drawn up on the basis of the coalition agreement. More...

Wednesday 13 June 2007

Pollution causes 21,000 deaths in Holland
Some 21,000 deaths in the Netherlands, or 14% of the total, are caused each year by environmental pollution, according to a report published by the World Health Organisation on Wednesday. More... comments (5)

Leaders blamed for VVD election woes
The report into the Liberal party (VVD)’s poor performance in last year’s election blames the entire party leadership, and in particular the leadership contest between Mark Rutte and Rita Verdonk. More...

TNT job cuts necessary, says advice group
The planned reorganisation and job cutting at post company TNT is necessary, and extra steps may be needed in future if costs continue to rise, according to an independent report by the Boston Consulting Group. More...

MPs want investigation into IT costs
Christian Democrat MPs have called for a parliamentary inquiry into government spending on IT projects. Earlier this week Trouw reported that the government could be spending up to €5bn a year on systems which are either useless or don't work properly. comments (1)

Saving energy is all about money
People who take steps to curb their energy usage mainly do it to cut their spending, according to research by Market Response. At the same time, almost 50% of those polled said it was up to individuals to work towards a more sustainable society, with only 25% believing it was the government's job.

Older people watch more tv
The Dutch watch an average of 15 hours television a week, says national statistics office CBS. People aged 65 and older watch the most - 21 hours a week - while 15 to 24-year-olds spend 13 hours a week in front of the tv.

Murder rate falls for third year
The murder and manslaughter rate in the Netherlands has fallen for the third year running, according to national statistics office CBS. More...

Telegraaf tipped over missing toddler
The Telegraaf says it received an anonymous letter claiming to know the whereabouts of missing British toddler Madeleine McCann. More... comments (7)

Ed Nijpels in speedboat chase
The queen's commissioner in Friesland Ed Nijpels took part in a spectacular speedboat chase in an effort to catch a burglar on Monday night, the Volkskrant reports. The paper says Nijpels, a neighbour and two police officers chased after and caught the would-be thief who had made his getaway by boat.

Blood donors angry over profits
A number of blood donors have called on the blood collection agency Sanquin to be more open about its commercial activities, the Volkskrant reports on Wednesday. In particular they want to know how much money the company makes from donated blood. More...

Royals thank well-wishers for Ariane support
Prince Willem-Alexander and princess Máxima thank everyone for their ‘heart-warming support’ during the recent illness of their youngest daughter Ariane. The couple’s thoughts were made known in a letter published on the royal household’s website. Ariane was hospitalised by a respiratory disease shortly after her birth in April.

Fine under-16s for alcohol, says minister
Youngsters under the age of 16 should be fined for possessing alcohol, says health minister Ab Klink. The suggestion follows a recent upsurge in alcohol abuse among children as young as 12. Currently only the sale of alcoholic drinks to minors is illegal. More...

Barclays may improve ABN Amro offer
Barclays is considering improving its offer for ABN Amro to include a cash component, the Financial Times reports on Wednesday. Another option under consideration is transferring the proceeds of the $21bn LaSalle sale to shareholders, the paper says. More...

Hospital price liberalisation slowed
Health minister Ab Klink has put a brake on the liberalisation of hospital fees, to allow hospitals to sort out the administrative mess surrounding the process, the Volkskrant reports on Monday. More...

Dutch firms circumvent CO2 targets
Companies in the Netherlands and eight other EU countries are dodging their responsibilities to reduce CO2 emissions, the Worldwide Fund for Nature said on Wednesday. The environmental group says firms are buying pollution rights outside the EU, meaning that emission levels within Europe are not falling.

Tuesday 12 June 2007

Schiphol to get new noise norms: sources
Maximum noise limits imposed on Schiphol airport are to be increased to allow for continued growth in take-offs and landings this year, sources have told news agency ANP. More...

New senate sworn in
The new 75 member senate, or upper house of parliament, was sworn in on Tuesday. Among the new senators is German-born lawyer Britta Böhler, who has represented Theo van Gogh's murderer, anti-Islam campaigner Ayaan Hirsi Ali and Islamic terrorist suspects.

Technical temps sector growth slows
Growth in demand for temporary technical staff is declining according to temp agency association ABU. More...

Dutch score low in organic farming
The Netherlands is trailing the European average in terms of organic farming, according to figures from EU statistics office Eurostat. Some 3.9% of EU farmland is devoted to organic farming but in the Netherlands it is just 2.5%. Top organic farming nation is Austria, with 11%.

Zoo liable for gorilla injuries
Rotterdam's Blijdorp zoo is liable for the injuries caused when the silverback gorilla Bokito escaped from his enclosure and attacked a woman, a spokesman for the zoo said on Tuesday. More... comments (1)

Young fathers needed on defence missions
Thousands of extra recruits will be needed if the proposal not to send fathers with young children on military missions abroad is introduced, according to a ministry of defence report, quoted in today's Volkskrant. More...

Lights out on Dutch streets
The coalition parties have called for street lights along roads to be switched off more often in a bid to reduce local authority energy bills. 'The cabinet wants to make energy efficient bulbs compulsory, so the government should lead the way,' said Christian Democrat MP Ger Koopmans.

Congolese boy should stay in Holland
George, the six-year-old Congolese boy threatened with deportation despite living for four years with the same Dutch foster family, should be allowed to stay in the Netherlands, an Amsterdam court ruled on Monday. More... comments (1)

More opposition to Barclays ABN Amro bid
A second hedge fund has added its voice to opposition to Barclay's planned takeover of ABN Amro, the Financial Times reports on Monday. More...

No increase in Fortis bid for ABN Amro
Fortis does not plan to increase its joint €71bn takeover bid for ABN Amro, chairman Jean-Paul Votron is quoted as saying in French paper La Tribune. More...

Ahold appoints deputy CFO
Food giant Ahold appointed Kimberly Ross in the new role of deputy chief financial officer on Tuesday. Ross, currently senior vice president and chief of tax and treasury, takes up her role on July 1. More...

Afghanistan needs more support: Balkenende
The international community has a long-term responsibility towards Afghanistan and must not allow it to become a ‘failed state’ again, prime minister Jan Peter Balkenende said on Monday after talks with his Canadian counterpart Stephen Harper in Ottawa. More...

Over 80 drunken young teens hospitalised
At least 86 drunken young teenagers were admitted to hospital in the first half of this year, pediatrician Nico van der Lely of the Reinier de Graaf hospital in Delft told ANP on Tuesday. He says the children are around 13 years old and often drink litres of beer or alcohol. More...

New plan to halve medical mistakes
Hospital specialists have drawn up a 10-point plan to reduce the number of medical mistakes by half within five years. More...

VVD leadership meets over divisions
The Liberal (VVD) party leadership met again on Monday evening to discuss the continuing power struggle between leader Mark Rutte and his former challenger Rita Verdonk, the Financieele Dagblad reports. More...

Teachers' pay lags behind private sector
Since 1990, teachers' spending power has gone up some nine percentage points less than that of the average worker, teaching union AOb said on Tuesday. . More... comments (1)

Monday 11 June 2007

First-time mothers are almost 30
The average age of first-time mothers remained stable at 29.4 years in 2006, the national statistics office CBS said on Monday. In 1970 the average age of a first-time mother was 24.

VVD divisions grow as Rutte warns Verdonk
Liberal (VVD) leader Mark Rutte has warned the party’s MPs to focus on their role in parliament or ‘get lost’. The comments, directed at Rita Verdonk, who narrowly lost out to Rutte in last year’s leadership contest, are contained in an interview in today’s Telegraaf. More...

Top corporate salaries rise 12%
Top corporate salaries in the Netherlands rose by 12.3% last year, according to the Volkskrant’s annual survey. More...

New clue in 1999 teenage murder
MPs have called for a full investigation into an anonymous letter published in Sunday's Telegraaf which claims to throw new light on the murder of teenager Marianne Vaatstra in 1999. Her killer was never caught. More...

ABN Amro wants spoof ad removed
ABN Amro has decided not to take legal action against satirical website BuroRenkema.nl for refusing to remove a spoof advert for internet banking from its website . More...

Ex-health minister to head AFM
Former health minister Hans Hoogervorst is to take over as head of the financial services sector watchdog AFM, the cabinet agreed on Friday. Hoogervorst, a member of the free-market Liberal party (VVD), quit politics at the last election.

Justice ministry seeks 500 DNA experts
The justice ministry wants to take on an extra 500 DNA experts which it says will boost the number of solved crimes by 15%. The scientists will focus on burglary in private homes and commercial property, a ministry spokesman confirmed on Monday.

Library membership declines
The number of people who were members of a library fell from 4.3 million in 2001 to four million in 2005, the national statistics office CBS said on Monday. More... comments (1)

Cabinet to present strategy package
The cabinet will make its detailed plans for the next four years public on Thursday. More...

Pull out of ABN Amro battle, Barclays told
Hedge fund Atticus Capital, which has a 1% stake in Barclays, has urged the British bank to pull out of the take-over battle for ABN Amro, the Financial Times reports on Monday. More...

Bus passengers to help police
Passengers on Connexxion buses will be able to help the police with their enquiries from Monday. The police will use the screens showing news headlines and weather reports to broadcast requests for information for a test period of one year, a police spokesman said on Monday.

Children waiting too long for help
Figures for waiting lists for child and youth care are being artificially massaged to look shorter than they really are, reports the Nederlands Dagblad on Monday. More...

DJ launches t-shirt line
Rotterdam trance dj Ferry Corsten is launching his own line of clothing during his current American tour, reports ANP on Monday. Corsten, one of the world's top djs, will present eight t-shirts during his 45 minute long shows, which he is performing in 22 different towns across the US.

Housing association spending criticised
The Netherlands' dozens of housing associations are accused of investing in the wrong things in Monday's Financieele Dagblad. Coen Teulings, director of the government's bureau for economic policy analysis CPB says there is too little supervision of the roughly €200bn in their coffers. More...

Charity money put into dubious investments
The cancer charity KWF has investments in the four largest tobacco manufacturers while the animal protection agency money is invested in companies in Burma where there is a UN boycott because of human rights abuses, according to a report by Oxfam/Novib. More...

The Netherlands fails to protect endangered species.
The Ministry of agriculture, nature and food safety is not policing the trade in endangered animals properly, according to a report in the Volkskrant on Monday. More...

Moluccans remember train hijack
The Netherlands' Moluccan community today remembers the 30th anniversary of the bloody ending of a train hijacking in which six hijackers and two passengers were killed. More... comments (2)

Friday 08 June 2007

Cabinet backs smoking ban in bars
Smoking is to be partially banned in Dutch cafés, bars, restaurants and discotheques from July next year, the cabinet agreed on Friday. Smoking will still be permitted in separate, closed-off rooms without waitress service, health minister Ab Klink said after Friday's cabinet meeting. More...

One dead as storm hits Holland
A woman in the Brabant town of Goirle was killed on Friday afternoon after being hit by lightning as heavy storms moved into the Netherlands from the south. More...

Essent Nuon merger on despite grid split
Dutch energy firms Essent and Nuon are to go ahead with their plans to merge, despite the government’s decision to make them split off their distribution grids, Essent said on Friday. More...

Porpoise found in freezer
Police in the southern town of Helmond found the perfectly preserved body of a 120 cm-long porpoise in the freezer of a 32-year-old local. More...

Grant for Iran trade mission withdrawn
Junior economic affairs minister Frank Heemskerk has withdrawn a grant made to an independent trade mission to Iran because of threats by the UN to impose stricter sanctions on the country. Heemskerk has also urged the Dutch council for trade promotion (NCH) which is organising the trip to cancel it.

ABN Amro expands in Taiwan
ABN Amro is being paid €156m to take over 32 branches of an ailing Taiwanese bank by the Taiwan government, ANP reports on Friday. More...

Dutch court ruling 'shocking', says BoA
Bank of America is set to accuse the Dutch company court of flouting Dutch and European regulations in its ‘shocking and unlawful’ decision to block its $ 21 bn takeover of Dutch bank ABN Amro’s US arm LaSalle, according to today’s Financial Times. More...

'Make noise key to Schiphol boss bonus’
The bonuses awarded to the directors of Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport should be related to their success in complying with noise and environmental requirements rather than meeting financial targets, says Labour (PvdA) MP Paul Tang. More...

Groningen law student may not wear veil
Groningen university is in talks with a law student who insists on wearing a full veil or niqaab to class. The university says the student may not take any exams with her face covered and has given her a few days to consider her position. comments (11)

Belgium trys to trace Dutch 'murderess'
An international arrest warrant has been issued for a 45-year-old Dutch woman who was sentenced to 25 years in jail at the end of last year by a Belgian court for murdering her husband, the AD reports. The woman, who had been released from jail pending an appeal, is said to have fled to Holland.

Driver fined for sleeping on hard shoulder
A Czech lorry driver has been fined €1,625 for parking his lorry on the A16 emergency vehicle lane and having a nap. More...

Dole cheats caught by water checks
Several hundred people have been caught making fraudulent welfare benefit claims after an analysis of their household water consumption, Groningen city council said on Friday. More... comments (1)

Female students do better than male
Female students are performing better and gaining their bachelor degrees faster than male students, according to figures released by the Dutch university association VSNU. More... comments (1)

MPs back refugee amnesty
A large majority of MPs yesterday backed the government's plans to bring in amnesty for up to 30,000 long-term asylum seekers. The amnesty applies to refugees who entered the Netherlands before April 2001. comments (1)

Dutch state may face foreign firm tax claims
Foreign firms may be able to claim back tens of millions of euros from the Dutch state in wrongly-paid dividend tax, the Financieele Dagblad reports on Friday. More...

Hospitals over-charge insurers €1.5bn
Holland's hospitals have claimed €1.5bn too much from insurance companies over the past three years, the Volkskrant reports on Friday. Insurers have given the hospitals until October 1 to come up with a plan to pay back the money. More...

Bike thief stabs teenager to death
An 18-year-old youth was stabbed and killed on Thursday night after apparently trying to stop a bike thief, Rotterdam police said. The victim was with a group of friends on the Persoonshaven when they saw the man trying to steal a bike. comments (1)

Power firms told to split off energy grids
Dutch energy companies are to be forced to create separate firms for their grid operations, economic affairs minister Maria van der Hoeven told parliament late on Thursday. More...

Thursday 07 June 2007

Refugee amnesty: PvdA wants wider scope
Labour party (PvdA) proposals to widen the scope of the amnesty for long-term refugees were greeted with astonishment by the party’s Christian Democrat coalition partner during Thursday’s debate on the deal. More...

Inflation rate unchanged at 1.8%
Annual inflation remained unchanged at 1.8% in May, the national statistics office CBS said on Thursday. According to European calculations inflation was up slightly at 2%, just above the 1.9% European average.

Café smoking ban next summer (update)
Health minister Ab Klink is sticking firm to earlier pledges to introduce a total ban on smoking in cafés, bars and restaurants by July 2008. The cabinet is due to discuss the ban on Friday. More... comments (15)

Fortuyn's brother to sue state
Marten Fortuyn, brother of murdered politician Pim Fortuyn, is set to sue two former ministers for manslaughter. Fortuyn holds the government responsible for his brother's murder on May 6, 2002, saying he had not been given proper security.

ABN Amro less popular for jobs, says FD
The takeover battle for banking group ABN Amro is having a knock-on effect on staffing, the Financieele Dagblad reports on Thursday, saying demand for traineeships has slumped dramatically. More...

Rosenmöller to join railways
Paul Rosenmöller, former union activist and leader of political party GroenLinks, has joined Dutch Rail (NS) as a supervisory board member. Rosenmöller has become a television documentary maker since leaving national politics.

Deutsche Telekom to buy Orange
Deutsche Telekom has made an offer to buy the Dutch arm of mobile phone company Orange, which has two million customers in the Netherlands. More...

Choirs fined for copying music
A number of amateur choirs and musical groups will be fined at least €500 each for using illegal photocopies of sheet music, authors’ rights organisation Stichting Musicopy confirmed on Thursday.

Ahold books slight fall in first quarter profits
Food retail group Ahold, which owns the Albert Heijn supermarket chain, announced a slight fall in profits in the first quarter of 2007. More...

AID director under fire
The workers council of the general inspection service (AID), part of the ministry of agriculture, has passed a vote of no confidence in its director Annemie Burger. More...

Paedophiles hunt for volunteer work
At least 250 paedophiles are actively looking for volunteer work in youth and sports clubs, the Volkskrant reports on Thursday. More...

Armed forces to recruit in schools
The armed forces are to begin a recruitment campaign in schools to overcome a shortage of personnel, general Hans Leigh told TV news programme Netwerk on Wednesday evening. More...

Verhagen has doubts on Iran trade mission
Foreign minister Maxime Verhagen has expressed doubts about a trade mission to Iran being organised by the Dutch trade council NCH for later this month. More...

Liberal leaders blamed for election defeat
The entire Liberal (VVD) leadership is responsible for last year's general election defeat, according to an internal party commission, leaked to NOS tv. More...

Arnhem referendum turnout too low
Only 10.33% of the electorate took part in yesterday's vote on plans to revamp Arnhem's river frontage and build a harbour. More...

No changes yet in organ donation system
The cabinet does not yet plan to change the current system of registering organ donors, health minister Ab Klink told MPs during an emergency debate yesterday. More...

Minister firm on café smoking ban
Health minister Ab Klink is sticking firm to earlier pledges to introduce a total ban on smoking in cafés, bars and restaurants by July 2008. The cabinet is due to discuss the ban on Friday. More... comments (3)

MPs debate refugee amnesty
MPs today debate the long-awaited amnesty for up to 30,000 long-term refugees which gives them permanent residency rights in the Netherlands. More...

Wednesday 06 June 2007

No amnesty for war criminals
Some 1,000 people who were involved in war crimes - and their family members - will not be included in the amnesty for long-term refugees, junior justice minister Nebahat Albayrak told MPs on Tuesday evening. A further 500 people are under investigation.

Terrorist attack threat ‘limited’ in Holland
The threat of a terror attack in the Netherlands remains ‘limited’, but cannot be ruled out entirely, according to the latest government report into potential terrorism in Holland. More...

First barrel of herring raises €70,000
The first barrel of new Dutch herring has been sold at auction in Scheveningen for €70,000. The winning bid was made by Dutch TV presenter Jan Douwe Kroeske, and the money raised by the sale will be given to the Kankerfonds cancer research charity. .

Finance minister keeps quiet on ABN Amro
Finance minister Wouter Bos says it will be mid-August at least before he has anything to say about the takeover of banking group ABN Amro either by Barclays or a three-bank consortium. More...

Minister allocates €441m for family centres
The government will invest €441m in a national network of youth and family centres, family affairs minister André Rouvoet announced today. The centres will focus on children from birth to the age of 19 with the aim of indentifying problems early and taking action. More...

€27,000 for sacked divorced journalist
Newspaper Katholiek Nieuwsblad must pay €27,000 in compensation to its former editor-in-chief, a Den Bosch court ruled on Wednesday. More...

Missing toddlers' parents visit Holland
The parents of missing British toddler Madeleine McCann are in the Netherlands today and tomorrow. Gerry and Kate McCann, who used to live in the Netherlands, will meet representatives of the Dutch police and hold a press conference in the Amsterdam Hilton. More... comments (1)

Dutch registered ships stable
The number of ships sailing under the Dutch flag grew only marginally last year, the Dutch ship owners association KVNR said in its annual report. On January 1 2007 there were 747 Dutch registered seagoing ships, up just nine on 2006. Worldwide the growth in shipping was 7%.

Woman leaves €13,000 on train
An 83-year-old German woman left nearly €13,000 on a train from Holland to Germany, after withdrawing it from a bank in the Dutch city of Enschede. More...

Health insurers fund trips to Lourdes
Two health insurance companies - CZ and VGZ - have vowed to continue to help patients pay for pilgrimages to Lourdes, the Nederlands Dagblad reports on Wednesday. More... comments (11)

Two IPOs for Euronext Amsterdam
Two IPOs are planned for the Amsterdam stock exchange later this month. Property group Uni-Invest will make its return to the bourse, hoping to raise €312m by issuing some 24 million shares. Biopharmaceutical group AMT aims to raise €50m with the issue of five million shares.

Cycling to music under investigation
Transport minister Camiel Eurlings has commissioned research into the dangers presented by listening to music while riding a bike. More...

Morocco trips by healthworkers okayed
Mental health group Riagg Rijnmond broke no rules by sending two workers to treat patients at a hospital in Morocco during the summer months, the AD reports today. More...

Dutch want EU fair play on tax
European finance ministers yesterday failed to agree on new rules for examining unfair tax competition between member states, after protests from the Netherlands, Belgium and Hungary. More...

Society commentator Gert-Jan Dröge dies
TV presenter, writer and actor Gert-Jan Dröge has died in Amsterdam at the age of 64. He had been suffering from lung cancer. Dröge was best known for his satirical reports on Dutch high society, broadcast in the AVRO programme Glamourland.

Crackdown planned on drink-driving
Young drivers may be forced to follow a re-education course if caught driving with blood alcohol levels above 0.5 (50 mg per 100 ml), equivalent to two or three small glasses of beer or wine. The current limit is 0.8. More...

Western European energy market formed
The energy trading markets of Germany, France, the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg are to be coupled from January 1, 2009, according to today’s Het Financieele Dagblad. More...

Tuesday 05 June 2007

Jobseekers back anonymous applications
Almost eight out of 10 people looking for work think anonymous job applications would boost their chances of getting a job, according to new research out today. More...

Deventer murder decision delayed
The high court has delayed a decision on whether or not to reopen the Deventer murder case pending the outcome of more research. Ernest Louwes, who was sentenced to jail for 12 years for killing widow Jacqueline Wittenberg, has always protested his innocence.

Timberlake signs up Dutch YouTube star
Dutch teenager and YouTube star Esmée Denters is the first signing to Justin Timberlake’s new record label Tennman Records. More...

Eneco buys into CO2-free power plant
Energy firm Eneco has taken a 50% stake in SEQ Nederland which plans to build a CO2 emissions free power plant in Friesland. No financial details were released. More...

Temps benefit from new pay agreement
Trades unions and employment agencies have reached a new agreement on pay and conditions for 700,000 temporary staff. Long-serving temps will benefit from better a better pension arrangement from January 1 2008 and all temps will receive a 3% rise in salary.

DSM sets up scientific advisory board
Chemicals group DSM is setting up an international scientific advisory board to support the company in its growth ambitions. More...

RBS ends talks on ABN Amro's LaSalle
Royal Bank of Scotland has broken off talks with Bank of America about LaSalle, RBS CEO Fred Goodwin said on Tuesday. More...

Dutch lead Europe on internet at home
The Netherlands has the highest internet penetration in Europe, with 83% of households having an internet connection, according to tracking firm ComScore. The average European spends 24 hours a month on line, ComScore told the BBC.

Dutch YouTube star on Timberlake's label
Dutch teenager Esmeé Denters is the first signing to Justin Timberlake's new record label Tennman Records. Denters, 18, made a name for herself with her cover versions and home-made videos on YouTube, which have been viewed by up to 1.5 million people.

Former health minister advises Hungary
Former Dutch health minister Hans Hoogervorst is being paid €30,000 a month to advise the Hungarian government on reforming its health service, news agency ANP reports on Tuesday. More... comments (6)

Home owners angry at property tax change
The home owners lobby group VEH says it is considering legal action after the home affairs ministry reached a deal with local councils to abolish the ceiling on property tax (ozb) rises. More...

Doctors 'too close' to drugs industry
Nearly all medical specialists in the Netherlands have ties to the pharmaceutical industry, Trouw reports on Tuesday. More...

Security cameras don't stop violence
The use of camera surveillance in night-life hot spots does not stop violent and disruptive behaviour but does lead to more arrests, according to researchers at NHL University in Leeuwarden. More...

Spring talks in trouble over sacking law
Preparations for the annual spring talks between ministers, unions and employers reach a critical phase this week, the Volkskrant reports on Tuesday. More...

State to guarantee start-up loans
Unemployed people who decide to start up their own companies will be able to get bank guarantees from the state, junior social affairs minister Ahmed Aboutaleb said late on Monday. More...

VVD leader is not right-wing, says Verdonk
The Liberal party (VVD) needs vision and a 'decent right-wing' leader like the new French president Nicolas Sarkozy, says former contender Rita Verdonk in HP/De Tijd. More...

Two thirds of jobless are 'unemployable'
Of the 150,000 people living on welfare benefits in the nine biggest Dutch cities, two-thirds have very little chance of ever finding a job, according to research by the Volkskrant. More... comments (1)

Monday 04 June 2007

Thousands sign up as organ donors
Over 50,000 people have downloaded an organ donor registration form since Friday night’s hoax tv broadcast in which three people competed for a dying woman’s kidney. More... comments (2)

Private equity gets code of conduct
Venture capitalists should make their intentions clear to companies they intend to take over before they actually do so, the Dutch venture capitalists organisation NVP said on Monday. The NVP has drawn up a code of conduct for members arguing that rules are necessary because of the increasingly important role private equity funds play in the economy.

Dutch sued over Srebrenica (update)
The Netherlands refused crucial UN air support to their own troops defending the Muslim enclave of Srebrenica, lawyers representing the families of the thousands of men killed in the massacre told news agency Reuters. More...

Early dementia diagnosis betters treatment
Doctors and health service workers are being urged to look more carefully for signs of dementia after research showed some 50% of diagnoses are made too late. More...

Dutch refused Srebrenica air support: lawyer
The Netherlands refused crucial UN air support to their own troops defending the Muslim enclave of Srebrenica, lawyers told news agency Reuters. The lawyers, representing the families of the 8,000 men and boys killed by the Bosnian Serb army, are suing the Netherlands and UN, whom they blame in part for allowing the massacre to happen. More...

Pension funds invest €500m on 'clean' firms
The Netherlands two biggest pension funds, ABP and PGGM have mandated their joint investment fund Alpinvest to put €500m into non-listed innovative clean technology companies. Alpinvest says the search will focus on Europe and the US and will run until 2009, with a possible extension to 2010.

Controversial bishop of Breda to retire
Tiny Muskens, the 71-year-old outspoken bishop of Breda, has asked the pope to relieve him of his duties on health grounds. More...

'Dutch government wastes billions on IT'
The government is wasting billions of euros on computer technology which does not work properly or is never put into use, Trouw reports on Monday. The paper says up to €5bn could be being spent on useless systems every year. More...

New animal species discovered in Suriname
Dutch and Surinamese scientists have discovered 24 new animal species in the eastern part of Suriname, including a fluorescent purple frog, the Volkskrant reports on Monday. More...

First female university rector to be named
Dymph van den Boom is poised to be named rector of the combined University and Hogeschool (polytechnic) of Amsterdam, according to student newspaper Folia. Van den Boom, currently dean of the social and behavioural science unit at the UvA, would be the first female university head in the country.

SNS Reaal buys AXA's Dutch insurance
Dutch bank insurance company SNS Reaal is to buy the Dutch insurance activities of French giant AXA for €1.75bn in cash. The deal takes in AXA Nederland, Winterhur Insurance Holding and DBV Holding. More...

Dutch magician gets standing ovation
Dutch illusionist Hans Klok received a standing ovation from the 2000-strong audience for his Las Vegas show The Beauty of Magic which opened on Saturday night. More...

Cites lifts ban on ivory
The 12-day meeting of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (Cites) which began in The Hague on Saturday, announced on Sunday that it has approved exports of elephant ivory from Botswana (20 tons), Namibia (10 tons) and South Africa (30 tons). More...

Hema sold to UK investment group
Department store group Hema is to be sold to UK investment company Lion Capital. The deal was finalised by Hema parent company Maxeda on Friday night. More...

230 drug arrests at Arnhem parties
Police in Arnhem arrested 230 people during two dance events in the city on Saturday night for drugs offences. More...

Thousands sign up as donors after tv hoax
At least 18,000 people downloaded a form to become an organ donor following Friday's broadcast of the kidney donor tv show which transpired to be a hoax. More...

Thousands take part in nude photo shoot
Some 2,000 people were photographed naked in and around the Marnixstraat multi-storey car park in the early hours of Sunday morning by US photographer Spencer Tunick. More...

Friday 01 June 2007

Kidney donor tv show was a hoax
The controversial kidney donor tv show broadcast on Dutch TV on Friday evening was a staged performance. The show, in which a terminally ill woman was to chose which of three people would get one of her kidneys, had created a storm of protest at home and abroad. More... comments (2)

Councils to decide on drinking age
The cabinet has voted to let local councils decide whether to increase the legal age teenagers can buy beer and pre-mixed drinks from 16 to 18. In addition, the controls of alcohol sales in shops and cafés is to be handed over from the food inspectorate to councils, the cabinet agreed on Friday. More...

Dutch jobless rate lowest in EU
The Netherlands had the lowest unemployment rate in the EU in April at just 3.3%, the European statistics agency Eurostat said on Friday. Denmark was second with 3.4%. The European average also reached a new record low of 7.1%, Eurostat said.

Mass media presence for kidney show
Some 40 foreign media crews are in Hilversum for tonight's broadcast of the controversial kidney donor show, in which three people will compete for the kidney of a terminally-ill woman, broadcaster BNN said. More... comments (1)

SUV owners face extra tax (update)
The government plans to introduce a new tax on high emission vehicles such as the BMW X5 and Citroen C6, junior finance minister Jan Kees de Jager says in an interview with Friday’s Telegraaf. More...

Record complaints about school exams
The secondary school pupil lobby group LAKS had received 84,404 complaints about this year's school leaving exams by Thursday evening, a record number. More...

High schools and colleges get richer
The assets held by Holland's secondary schools, training colleges and HBO colleges total €4.3bn, an increase of €1.5bn on eight years ago, according to national statistics office CBS. More...

Mushroom-related incidents rise
Ambulances were called to deal with 128 incidents involving hallucinogenic mushrooms in Amsterdam last year, almost double the 2005 total, the city's health authority (GGD) said on Friday. More... comments (1)

Car death baby mother not prosecuted
The 11-month-old baby who died after being left in a car earlier this week probably died of dehydration and heat exhaustion, the public prosecution department said on Friday. The mother, a primary school teacher, is not being prosecuted. comments (1)

Swimming champ stays with Nike
Champion swimmer Pieter van den Hoogenband is not breaking his links with chief sponsor Nike, desite wearing a Speedo suit during the World Championships in Melbourne earlier this year because it was faster. 'Nike were not happy but have decided to keep Pieter on,' his manager said on Friday.

Extra tax planned for petrol-guzzling cars
The government plans to introduce a new tax on 'extremely polluting' SUVs such as the BMW X5 and Citroen C6, junior finance minister Jan Kees de Jager says in an interview with Friday's Telegraaf. More...

Krajicek faces tough task in French Open
Dutch tennis player Michaëlla Krajicek takes on the number eight seed Serena Williams in the third round of the French Open in Paris late on Friday in the final event of the sixth day's play. More...

Foundation to boost Dutch financial centre
The Dutch finance ministry is backing a new foundation aimed at establishing the Netherlands as a leading financial centre. More...

ABN Amro wants LaSalle peace deal: FT
ABN Amro wants the Royal Bank of Scotland-led consortium and Bank of America to resolve their dispute over the ownership of LaSalle to end the legal confusion surrounding the takeover battle for the Dutch bank, the Financial Times reports on Friday. More...