Thirty-six of the 59 MPs who lost their jobs in the last November’s election are still jobless and receiving generous unemployment benefits, costing the state some €2.5m annually, reports today’s De Pers newspaper.

Many ex-MPs find it hard to get a new job, the paper says. They have become too embroiled in the political machinations of The Hague and don’t have management experience.
‘What is left is someone with a big mouth, who is stubborn and not used to working together with people,’ the paper says.
Of the government ministers who lost their jobs only two, Gerrit Zalm and Hans Hoogervorst, still have to register who their new employer is.
The four former ministers who are now just ordinary MPs – including Henk Kamp and Rita Verdonk – also get top-up benefits of €40,000 to make up the difference between their ministerial and parliamentary salary of €92,000 a year.