VVD senator at centre of corruption probe stands down

VVD senator and Roermond council alderman Jos van Rey resigned on Monday night following accusations he coached a candidate for an interview for the position of mayor in the city.


It is the latest in a series of accusations against the Liberal party member, who is also suspected of corruption.
Ricardo Offermanns, a VVD member and party colleague and current mayor of the small town of Meerssen, has now withdrawn his candidacy for the Roermond mayoral job.
Further questions
Marianne Smitsmans, green party GroenLinks leader in Roermond, told the press on Monday evening the corruption case involving Van Rey goes much deeper than has been reported so far.
She was speaking after being interviewed by police earlier in the day.
According to Smitsmans the press coverage so far is ‘just the tip of the iceberg’. She said she had heard tapped telephone conversations involving ‘people other than Van Rey’.
The national VVD party has issued a statement saying it ‘respects’ Van Rey’s decision to stand down.

Thank you for donating to DutchNews.nl.

We could not provide the Dutch News service, and keep it free of charge, without the generous support of our readers. Your donations allow us to report on issues you tell us matter, and provide you with a summary of the most important Dutch news each day.

Make a donation