News from DutchNews.nl

Politicians head for 'Sharia triangle' to find out for themselves

2013-05-21T14:09:18Z

Social affairs minister Lodewijk Asscher and MP and anti-Islam campaigner Geert Wilders both paid visits to a district in The Hague dubbed the 'Sharia triangle' on Tuesday.

]]> Asscher made a fact-finding visit to part of the city's Schilderswijk neighbourhood early on Tuesday morning. It was an 'individual visit, aimed at having a look around part of town which is being written about', a spokesman for the minister said.

On Saturday, newspaper Trouw published an article saying the area is so dominated by orthodox Muslims they are dictating what people should wear and how they should behave.

The claim was denied by local politicians and the police. Local police chief Michel de Roos told broadcaster Omroep West claims by Trouw that the police allow locals to solve their own problems is not true. The police presence in the area has been strengthened and local beat officers have a strong local network, he said.

Geert Wilders spent 15 minutes walking through the area and did not speak to any locals, RTL news reported. 'This is a part of the Netherlands where our norms and standards apply,' Wilders told reporters during his stroll.

Earlier stories
Police, politicians deny part of The Hague is a Sharia triangle

is so dominated by orthodox Muslims they are dictating what people should wear and how they should behave - See more at: http://www.dutchnews.nl/news/archives/2013/05/police_locals_deny_claim_part.php#sthash.vcdeHmSO.dpuf

Health reforms will give too much power to insurers: dentists

2013-05-21T13:58:16Z

Plans by health minister Edith Schippers to allow health insurers to restrict patient access to approved providers will give them too much power, according to Dutch dentists' association NMT.

]]> The minister plans to allow insurers to refuse to pay for treatment carried out by practitioners not on their approved list.

Some 95,000 people have now signed a petition against the changes, which was handed over to the minister on Tuesday afternoon.

'This will give health insurers too much power,' an NMT spokeswoman told news agency ANP. 'It means if your dentist does not agree with the health insurer's terms, your treatment will no longer be paid for.'

VVD to introduce 'statement of integrity'

2013-05-21T13:51:22Z

All politicians of the right-wing liberal VVD party, from prime minister to local councillors, will have to sign a statement of integrity, party chairman Benk Korthals told the Nos on Tuesday.

]]> 'We are the largest party in the Netherlands and we want to provide honest politicians,' he told the broadcaster.

Signing the statement will be voluntary, but not doing so will have consequences, such as languishing at the bottom of the list drawn up for elections.

The introduction of the statement follows several recent scandals involving VVD politicians. A councillor in Noord-Holland was accused of corruption and bribery and the mayor of Schiedam is suspected of fiddling his taxes.

For politicians who do not know the meaning of the word integrity, there will be courses in how to be honest, Korthals said.

He will present the statement during the membership meeting on Saturday.

New Imtech boss calls for bonuses to be returned

2013-05-21T13:38:57Z

The new chief executive of Dutch technical services company Imtech has called on previous board members to return bonuses paid in 2010 and 2011 because of the accounting scandal which has engulfed the company.

]]> Gerard van de Aast made the call at the presentation of Imtech's first quarter earnings on Tuesday.

Van de Aast urged former CEO René van der Bruggen, former financial chief Boudewijn Gerner and former executives in Poland and Germany to return their bonuses.

Scandals

Imtech has been hit by a €150m write-off on an amusement park project in Poland and a €220m write-off on its German activities.

The Dutch shareholders' association VEB said in April it may take legal action against the two former directors for misleading investors.

Imtech expects to be able to publish its finalised 2012 accounts at the beginning of July.

New player enters mortgage market

2013-05-21T13:30:17Z

The NIBC bank said on Tuesday it is entering the Dutch mortgage market with immediate effect, Nos television reports.

]]> The market is currently dominated by the big three banks: Rabobank, ABN Amro and ING.

'We have taken note of the demand for new players in the mortgage market,' a spokesman told the Nos. 'More competition is never a bad thing.'

Interest rates

For the time being the bank will only sell annuity mortgages, with a slightly lower interest rate than that offered by the three big banks.

The aim is to build the business to 5% of the market over a number of years.

NIBC, founded in 1945 to help finance post-war reconstruction, began offering savings accounts in 2008 and has €8.2bn in holdings.

Prison spending cut plan will hit public safety, say legal experts

2013-05-21T13:25:17Z

The government's plans to slash spending on the prison system will hit public safety, the influential council for criminal law and youth protection (RSJ) said on Tuesday.

]]> Junior justice minister Fred Teeven plans to cut €340m from the prison budget. The plans include the closure of a number of the country’s 29 prisons, increasing the number of prisoners who share cells and boosting the use of electronic tagging.

The RSJ says Teeven's plans miss vision and will hamper efforts to settle convicted criminals successfully back into society. This is likely to increase the reoffending rate, the RSJ said.

Critics

Unions, the council for the judiciary and the Dutch bar association have already slammed the plans, saying they restrict the freedom of judges to decide who should be sent to prison.

The RSJ says people not considered suitable for release using electronic tagging will live under a more restrictive prison regime and will not be properly prepared for their return to the outside world.

Chairman Leo de Wit told the NRC Teeven must reconsider his plans. 'The key values of our prison system must remain intact,' he said.

Households put more money into investments

2013-05-21T13:20:51Z

The number of households putting their money into investments rather than savings accounts has risen for the first time in over two years.

]]> For nine quarters households were taking money out of their investments, but in the first quarter of 2013 money went back in, to the tune of €18m, the Dutch central bank said on Tuesday.

The rise is probably a result of low interest rates on savings accounts and the recent improvement in the stock exchange, says the bank.

Fears grow for volleyball player missing in Spain

2013-05-21T13:14:26Z

Fears are growing for the safety of Dutch international volleyball player Ingrid Visser and her partner who have been missing in Spain for two weeks.

]]> The couple disappeared in Murcia and police have found no trace of them since they checked into their hotel two weeks ago. Their black rental car has also vanished and their luggage remains at the hotel.

Her family alerted the police after the couple failed to turn up for an appointment in the Netherlands. They also failed to meet a hospital appointment in Spain.

Visser’s family have urged the Spanish people to join the hunt for the couple and have set up a Facebook page to help spread the word.

Visser played for local club CAV Murcia between 2010 and 2012. She ended her international career last year with 514 caps.

Prestigious prize for novelist Gerbrand Bakker

2013-05-21T13:10:11Z

Dutch writer Gerbrand Bakker has won the prestigious Independent Foreign Fiction Prize for his novel The Detour.

]]> The prize, awarded each year by the British Independent newspaper, includes a cheque for nearly €12,000.

The Detour is the story of a woman from Amsterdam who escapes to a remote farmhouse in Wales when her affair with a student ends.

The Independent said of the book, published in 2010 and translated by David Colmer, that Bakker 'makes of rural Wales an eerie site of mystery and menace'.

The 51-year old Bakker is in good company. Earlier winners of the Foreign Fiction Prize include José Saramago and Orhan Pamuk, both of whom also won the Nobel Prize for Literature.

MPs call for clarity in hunger-striking refugees case

2013-05-21T07:35:22Z

MPs want clarity about the treatment of hunger-striking asylum seekers following comments on Monday evening by a doctor treating one of them.

]]> Doctor Elcke Bonsen told tv programme Nieuwsuur her client is being mistreated and she is being hindered in her work.

Ten asylum seekers are on hunger strike in a Rotterdam detention centre, two of whom have been placed in solitary confinement and one of whom is in hospital because of his deteriorating health.

Serious

MPs from the left-wing liberal D66, Christian Democrats and Labour say if what the doctor says is correct, the situation is very serious, the Nos reports.

On Tuesday Bonsen was allowed into the detention centre to speak to her client and told the Nos he made a good impression. She said earlier she had been told she was not welcome, but finally managed to make an appointment.

The MPs want more information about the case ahead of a parliamentary debate on Wednesday.

Top-level speed skating must stay in Friesland, says champion Kramer

2013-05-21T07:24:37Z

World and Olympic champion speed skater Sven Kramer has thrown his weight behind efforts to keep the national speed skating stadium in Friesland, Nos television reports.

]]> On Monday it emerged the Dutch skating association favours the development of a new stadium in Almere over refurbishment of the Thialf rink in Heerenveen.

‘Thialf must remain the skating Mecca,’ Kramer said using the microblogging service Twitter. ‘Friesland is skating and skating is Thialf.

Icedôme

The still confidential report, obtained by Nos, said both the skating union and national Olympic committee back the Almere Icedôme project above Thialf and a third tender from Zoetermeer.

A spokesman for Friesland province told local paper Friesch Dagblad the committee’s report is advisory and there is still one week before the final decision is published.

The province is prepared to invest €50m in renovating the Thialf stadium. It has been home to top level speed skating since 1986 but the facilities are now in need of renewal.

Driving schools need more checks: Labour MP

2013-05-21T07:13:19Z

There should be more regulation of driving schools and a central point where people can make their complaints, Labour MP Atje Kuiken told the Nos on Tuesday.

]]> Kuiken, who has raised the matter before, is worried about the increasing number of driving schools and says those which do not perform properly should lose their licence.

Last week, transport minister Melanie Schultz wrote to parliament saying she saw no reason for greater controls.

Over the past two years, 1,200 new driving schools have opened. 'There are now cowboys in the sector,' Kuiken said. 'We must get rid of them. After all, it affects young people and their money.'

Parliament will debate the matter on Tuesday afternoon.

40,000 sign condolence register for murdered brothers

2013-05-21T07:09:35Z

Some 40,000 people have so far signed a virtual condolence register set up for the two brothers killed by their father and left in a ditch near the river Rhine.

]]> Registers have also been opened in the town hall in Zeist, where the boys lived with their mother, and Wijk bij Duurstede, which is close to where the boys were found.

The bodies of the boys, aged seven and nine, were found on Sunday, nearly two weeks after they disappeared. Their father’s body was found in woods near Utrecht two weeks ago, prompting a massive hunt to find the children. He had committed suicide.

Police were forced to set up traffic controls to cope with sightseers along the narrow lane where the boys’ bodies were found.

Well-wishers have been leaving flowers at the spot since police completed their forensic examination of the ditch and drainage pipe.

Massive campaign aims for national support for sustainable energy

2013-05-21T06:59:37Z

A massive information campaign is to be launched in 2014 aimed at creating national support for the change-over to sustainable energy, according to media reports on Tuesday.

]]> The campaign is part of the National Energy Agreement currently being negotiated by the government, environmental agencies and the energy sector, reports Trouw.

The preliminary agreement says that by 2020 at least one million households and businesses will get half their energy from sustainable sources, says Trouw. By 2050, the whole country should be energy neutral.

According to the paper, there are also plans for the replacement of high energy use appliances and for a fund of €50m to €600m from which consumers and companies will be able to borrow at a low interest rate for energy saving measures.

Discussion about the agreement continues on Friday.

Tax avoidance costs developing countries €460m: Oxfam Novib

2013-05-21T06:48:43Z

Developing countries are missing out on some €460m a year in income because big companies use letterbox firms to avoid paying tax there, according to Dutch aid group Oxfam Novib.

]]> Brewers, oil firms and mining companies are happy to do business in Africa but use complicated constructions to reduce their tax bills, the organisation’s research, quoted by RTL news, shows.

This is a missed opportunity, because if poor countries had more tax income, they would be less dependent on aid. The Dutch government spends some €4bn a year on aid, but that is being reduced this year by €1bn because of spending cuts.

Oxfam Novib puts the shortfall in tax income at roughly €460m but wants the national audit office to do its own investigation to come up with more accurate figures, RTL said.

SNS, Cyprus prompt surge in Rabobank certificate trading

2013-05-21T06:35:24Z

Rabobank members have been selling far more membership certificates than normal, possibly prompted by Cyprus and the nationalisation of SNS, the Financieele Dagblad reports on Tuesday.

]]> ‘The gloomy sentiment surrounding banks over the past two months has been supply driven,’ a spokesman told the paper. In May, 10.4 million certificates were traded, in April 9.4 million and in March 8.1 million. In a normal month, trade totals an average 3.5 million.

Rabobank said it thinks the surge in sales has been prompted by the Cyprus crisis and financial difficulties at financial services group SNS. In both cases, investors were hit by losses on subordinated bonds. Rabobank certificates are also subordinated.

The cooperative bank itself is likely to have bought a considerable amount of these certificates, which may be pressuring its core assets, the paper says. Membership certificates owned by the bank itself may not be included as core capital.

The value of outstanding certificates is around €6.6 billion, the FD said.

Nationale Nederlanden facing €2.7bn miss-selling claim

2013-05-21T06:23:13Z

Insurance group Nationale Nederlanden faces a possible €2.7bn claim for miss-selling of its investment-based savings scheme.

]]> Website Follow the money has obtained a copy of a report by financial services complaints institute Kifid which says Nationale Nederlanden charged a client undisclosed costs on an investment-based savings scheme and must repay these together with the unrealised interest.

Judgements by Kifid are binding, the website said.

Nationale Nederlanden sold around 691,000 investment-based policies to clients. According to Follow the money, each policy-holder could claim €3,900, making a total of €2.7bn if every client puts one in.

The miss-selling scandal began in 2006 and several insurance companies have already paid out millions of euros in claims. The policies became known as woekerpolissen (profiteering policies) because of the high charges

It's been a cold spring, and it is going to get colder

2013-05-20T14:53:04Z

This year’s spring is one of the coldest on record and it is set to get colder over the next few days, according to weather website Weerplaza.

]]> On Thursday and Friday there is even a chance the temperature will dip under the previous cold records of 10.4 and 10.9 Celsius, set 25 years ago, Weerplaza says.

There may also be ground frost at night in sheltered places and the rain will continue into next weekend.

All in all, May 2013 is shaping up to be one of the top five coldest Mays since records began in 1901.

May 1962 is currently the coldest on record with an average temperature of 6.4 Celsius. This month so far, the average temperature is 6.8 Celsius.

Carice van Houten to play Greta Garbo in new biopic

2013-05-20T09:34:02Z

Dutch actress Carice van Houten is to co-produce and star in a new biographical film about the legendary Swedish film star Greta Garbo, Screen International reports.

]]>

The film will tell the story of the shop assistant who rose to become a major Hollywood star and retired in her prime. The film promises to be 'respectful but will offer a radically different perspective on Garbo', Screen International said.

“I was raised with silent films. I have always maintained an endless fascination for that era,’ Van Houten told the magazine. ‘I am strongly drawn to her story, her art, her loneliness and her beautiful complex structure.’

Van Houten is best known abroad for her roles in Valkyrie, Repo Men and Black Book and can currently be seen as Melisandre in HBO television series Game of Thrones. She has won five Dutch Golden Calf awards.

Dutch cookie law to be watered down

2013-05-20T08:50:58Z

Dutch rules requiring all websites to get express permission from visitors to use software known as cookies is to be watered down, economic affairs minister Henk Kamp has told parliament.

]]> MPs had urged the minister to take steps to stop the constant appearance of irritating popups on websites since the legislation came into effect last year.

Cookies are small pieces of code which allow websites and advertisers to track user movements and remember information. Dutch legislation goes further than EU rules and has been widely criticised.

‘I consider it very important to protect the privacy of internet users,’ the minister said. ‘At the same time, we must ensure this protection does not unnecessarily hinder users.’

Analytics

The new rules mean websites which collect anonymous information on visitors for analytical purposes or to ensure the smooth running of the site will not have to ask visitors for explicit permission to install cookies.

However websites which include tracking cookies, aimed at gathering information about users’ behaviour, will still have to ask visitors for permission to install them, Kamp said.

The new legislation is currently out to consultation and the finalised version will be sent to parliament in the autumn.

Bodies in ditch are missing brothers aged nine and seven

2013-05-20T05:50:56Z

Two bodies found in a drainage pipe near the river Rhine on Sunday are those of missing brothers Ruben, 9, and Julian, 7, police confirmed on Sunday evening.

]]> The boys have been missing since May 7 when their father picked them up for a holiday. He killed himself in woods near Utrecht and was found 13 days ago. Since then police and volunteers been involved in a massive hunt to find the boys.

The hunt also spread to Germany and Belgium in an effort to track down the route the father had driven from their home in Zeist to Doorn near Utrecht where his body was found.

Grief

Zeist mayor Koos Janssen told the news conference there are no words to describe the 'unmeasurable grief' of the boy’s mother, Iris. The boys' parents were divorced.

Experts are now working to find out how the boys died but say it will be extremely complex given the bodies have been in the water for almost two weeks. Cothen, where the bodies were found, is just a few kilometres south of Doorn.

Police were tipped off by a passer-by that there was something in the pipe which led from a ditch under the road. At first it appeared one body was in the water, but it later transpired there were two, police said.

Social media

Officials praised the role of social media like Facebook and Twitter in the search for the missing brothers. ‘We have deep respect for the interactive way people helped’ Janssen said.

The family used their social media pages to thank the hundreds of well-wishers who have contacted them, which they called ‘tiny lights of hope’, news agency ANP said.

Social workers

During the investigation it emerged that the family has been in touch with social workers since the parent's 'difficult divorce' in 2008.

According to the NRC, at least 10 official bodies have been involved with the family and there were concerns the children were suffering mentally because of their parent's constant conflict.

On April 22, the parents were told the child protection authority planned to place the boys under its supervision to ensure 'a stable, predictable and calm' situation.

A meeting to discuss the report had been scheduled for May 7, the day the father's body was found, the NRC said.

VVV Venlo relegated to Jupiler league

2013-05-19T19:21:27Z

After four seasons in the Eredivise, football club Venlo VVV has been relegated to the first division.

]]> VVV lost in the play-offs against Go Ahead Eagles 0-3. Deventer side Go Ahead Eagles will now play FC Volendam for a place in the top league.

Willem II finished bottom of the premier league and is automatically relegated.

Roda JC, which finished third from bottom, is still fighting to stay in the Eredivisie and will play first division side Sparta for the place on Thursday.

European competition

FC Twente and Utrecht will meet on Thursday in the first leg of their play-off for the final Dutch Europa League ticket.

Ajax qualifies automatically for the Champions League next season, as winner of the Eredivisie title. PSV will take part in the third qualifying round for the big competition. Feyenoord and Vitesse will take part in the qualifying rounds for the Europa League.

AZ, as winner of the KNVB Cup, takes part in the playoffs round for a place in the Europa League group stage.

Couple and grandchild on bikes killed as motorist loses control

2013-05-19T18:53:34Z

A couple in their 60s and their two-year-old grandchild were killed in a traffic accident while out cycling in Limburg on Sunday.

]]> The man, 67, his wife, 64, and the toddler died when a car ploughed into them at around 11.00 hours.

The driver of the car, a 32-year-old Polish national, apparently lost control of the car while cornering, hit a fence and then ended up on the cycle track.

Police are now trying to find out why he lost control of the car.

One in three watch Anouk but is the Eurovision winner a Dutch copy?

2013-05-19T18:04:05Z

Dutch singer Anouk returned to the Netherlands on Sunday after coming ninth in the Eurovision Song Contest, saying she was very happy with her performance.

]]> Anouk, who said she had aimed for a top 10 place with her self-penned number Birds, was the first Dutch entrant to qualify for the finals in nine years. The Russian, Ukraine and Greek entries were her own particular favourites, she said.

The show was watched by an estimated 5.9 million people in the Netherlands, or over one in three of the population.

Plagiarism?

Meanwhile, some people have been commenting on the similarity between the winning number, Only Teardrops, and a Dutch song from 2002 called I Surrender by K-Otic.

The Telegraaf quotes producer and talent show judge Eric van Tijn, who says that while the flute intro is ‘clearly one-on-one’ that is the only similarity.

Eurovision spokesman Sietse Bakker told news agency Novum 'there is a difference between plagiarism and sounding like another song.'

‘Every year someone says an entry sounds like another song but my experience is that the conclusion is never plagiarism,’ he said.

What do you think?

Hema, Zeeman don't sign Bangladesh textile industry safety deal

2013-05-19T17:51:18Z

Dutch high street brands Hema, Zeeman, Prenatal and Coolcat have not signed an agreement to improve safety and working conditions for textile workers in Bangladesh, according to the final list of signatories published online.

]]> C&A, V&D, G-Star and WE have signed up to the pledge, which is supported by global firms such as Primark, H&M, Inditex, Benetton and Carrefour.

A spokesman for Zeeman told news agency ANP on Thursday the company did plan to sign at some point but first ‘we have to see if it can all be realised’. Hema told ANP it already had procedures in place to ensure worker safety and wished to study the new agreement ‘in more detail’.

1,100 killed

The aim of the Accord on Fire and Building Safety is to improve the safety of people working in the textile sector following last month’s building collapse in which over 1,100 workers were killed.

The companies which support the accord cover over 1,000 garment factories in Bangladesh.

‘We are talking about improving the working conditions and lives of some of the most exploited workers in the world, earning $38 a month in dangerous conditions,’ said Jyrki Raina, secretary general of the IndustriALL Global Union, which helped initiate the movement.