DutchNews Podcast

Autumn is a season of missed opportunities and mellow fruitlessness for the Dutch government as its coronavirus strategy unravels. Rising infections, waiting lists for corona testing and no trace of a tracker app - we ask what's gone wrong. Also going nuclear are the VVD, who want to build more power stations if they remain in government next year. The socialists and D66 also kick off their election campaigns, while Amsterdam takes steps to control the spread of Airbnb.

A low-key Budget Day brings sober news on the economic front, unless you happen to be a princess approaching her 18th birthday. New coronavirus restrictions are imminent as a surge in infections puts even more strain on the testing system. The tension also took its toll on Rotterdam's Erasmusbrug and the prosecutor handling a high-profile racial abuse case. Plus we tell you why zoos have been hit by corona and there's a sense of anticlimax around the new football season in Emmen.

Despite a new surge in coronavirus infections, there were signs of normal life returning this week. The government's budget plans were leaked ahead of Prinsjesdag, the football season geared up for a restart and there was a bitter row in parliament about refugees. While D66 decided not to pick a self-confessed forger as its leader, Geert Wilders announced his discrimination trial would run for another season. And we bring you a shocking tale about blue parrots, legal eagles and a phantom balloon.

The podcast returns from the summer break to find the Dutch border has advanced further than the coronavirus tracker app. We explain why Ferd Grapperhaus's wedding turned into a political horror show and why Hugo de Jonge still can't celebrate his CDA leadership win. Plus we weigh up Tom Dumoulin's chances of winning the Tour de France and Dick Advocaat's chances of a fourth term as national football team coach now Ronald Koeman has jumped ship for Barcelona.

In this summer special, the podcast team answers your questions. The Dutch in EU negotiations. What are the best flavors of drop? (Hint: None) Are Dutch BBQs a hate crime? We've posted an excerpt of the full episode publicly, but if you want the answers to all of these questions, help keep the podcast going by supporting us on Patreon. Want to support the DutchNews podcast and keep our stocks of dog food and stroopwafels healthy? Click here to become a Patreon backer. https://www.patreon.com/DutchNewsNL

It's the last podcast before we head off for our holidays in sunny Spijkenisse. We tell you who won the Christian Democrat leadership election, how many people joined the unemployment queue in June and why neighbours saw red over a green house. In sport, calls grow louder to overturn a ban on singing in football stadiums. And love knows no bounds as campaigners persuade the government to relax travel restrictions for long-distance sweethearts.

There's a lot of outrage on this week's podcast. At the beheading of André Hazes. At lockdown measures. At a change to ID cards. But most of the podcast's outrage is directed at the inadequate compensation for nazi snitches. And while the CDA leadership election wasn't rigged, we do try to influence another election by encouraging you to vote for Sluisje McSluisface.

The lockdown has eased to the point where we can focus on less distressing subjects than a global pandemic. So we've put together a podcast packed with news of slavery, institutional racism and Brexit. One of Groningen's favourite sons comes home to revive the city's footballing fortunes. New laws come into force on paternity leave, organ donation and holiday letting. And there's a spike in popcorn sales as three seat snatchers set up yet another political party.

As the threat of coronavirus fades and the temperature rises, the podcast team ponders the new normal. Will packed train carriages lead to a second wave? Will any of the political leadership contests this summer descend into civil war? Are Amsterdam's canals less culturally significant than 'that Oranje feeling'? How will football fans be stopped from singing in stadiums? And which will be finished first: the coronavirus 'track and trace' app or Johan Derksen's talk show career?

In a week of cancellations, we bring you possibly the most distressing story ever to feature on the podcast. Wopke Hoekstra cancels himself as the next prime minister, the cup final is finally abandoned and Thierry Baudet causes ophef with his itinerant boreal bouquet. In better news, circle parties are saved from oblivion as Hema finds a buyer. We bring you up to speed with the lifting of the lockdown as Europe's campsites brace themselves for the return of Dutch tourists. And we tackle the hot political question of the day: is someone who's never eaten kapsalon fit to be prime minister of the Netherlands in 2021?

The podcast team looks back at a week dominated by bread and circuses, as the fairground wagons circled on the Malieveld and the first batch of new herring went to a good cause. The government is told to beef up its nitrogen reduction plans and warned of dire economic times ahead. Coronavirus testing is rolled out amid questions about why it took so long, while trials of a potential vaccine take a step forward. And we bring you the final chapter of a story that began 40 years ago with a trip to the library.

It has been a week of protests. Amsterdam Mayor Femke Halsema touched the hot button issue of slavery opposition while an unsocially-distant crowd gathered on the Dam to protest racism. Those demonstrations spread to other cities without incident but an anti-lockdown protest over the weekend saw multiple arrests. A skating rink protested the decision by its insurance company and internet providers lost their protest over The Pirate Bay.

On the eve of the first big relaxation of lockdown rules, the podcast team asks if it's safe to take a seat on the train or in the bar. Police close an abattoir in Gelderland following a coronavirus outbreak, shining a spotlight on conditions for migrant workers. The Netherlands continues to aggravate its EU partners over financial support for corona-hit countries, while at home there are more unsavoury twists in the tax office fraud scandal. And we bring you up to date on a spate of new political appointments as 'Mister Stikstof' Johan Remkes takes his last bow.

The nation took its first tentative steps into the 1.5-metre society this week. Children started going back to school, hairdressers started hacking though their waiting lists and the American ambassador resumed his love affair with fake news. In parliament, defence minister Ank Bijleveld narrowly survived her second motion of no confidence over the deaths of civilians in an air strike in Iraq. We also report on the freak incident that cost five experienced surfers their lives off the coast at Scheveningen and why the football season went into extra time in the courtroom.

As the nation prepares to emerge from lockdown, hand stitched face masks at the ready, we examine the government's plans in detail. Libraries, acupuncturists, sex clubs and campsite toilets all featured in Mark Rutte's schedule as Dutch society slowly returns to normal. Coronavirus also gave this year's ceremonies to commemorate the end of the war an even more sombre atmosphere than usual. While the humans are staying home, the animals have been getting busy, increasing the population of the Netherlands' zoos by two. In the absence of regular politics, fringe parties Denk and 50Plus maintained interest by hitting the self-destruct button simultaneously. And don't miss this week's ophef featuring a murdered politician, a discredited psychic and an invisible MP discussing 5G and climate change.

The podcast team overcomes 'coronamoeheid' and the horror of 'coronakapsels' to bring you the latest news on the lockdown as well as a few of the 700 new Dutch words that the epidemic has generated. Ministers come under more pressure over face masks, the economic outlook goes from terrible to abysmal and researchers warn of a hidden danger for intensive care patients. Mink farms are cordoned off as evidence emerges that some animals can transmit the virus, while the football season looks like going to extra time in the courtroom. We also consider a potential breakthrough in the MH17 investigation and the implications of Forum voor Democratie getting its first taste of power in Noord-Brabant.

As the schools prepare to reopen in May, we examine the government's strategy to release the lockdown. What's the impact on regular healthcare? Is it all over for the football season? How did KLM manage to stir up outrage about executive bonuses twice in a week? And most importantly of all, when can we stop cutting our own hair? In other news, there are fresh disclosures about the bombing raid in Iraq in 2015 and a landmark court decision on euthanasia. Plus: why hay fever sufferers need to be on their guard against German pollen.

In this week's coronavirus news, demand on intensive care beds appears to be easing off but there is growing concern about the spike in deaths in nursing homes. There's also news of research into what proportion of people may have developed immunity, a rash of scams involving face masks and why idiots are burning down phone masts. As the sense of apocalyptic doom intensifies, a church's Easter light show sparks panic in Brabant. Sporting events attempt to move indoors – with mixed results – and a grandmother gets more than she bargained for when she opens up a four-year-old second-hand jigsaw puzzle.

Our socially distancing podcast team updates you on the state of the lockdown as the first signs emerge of the outbreak being brought under control. What do privacy campaigners have to say about the government's plan to use tracker apps? Why is Wopke Hoekstra persona non grata in Italy? And will the football season end sooner than the row about whether to end the football season? Away from the corona doom and gloom, we've got news of a bionic bird and how MPs short-circuited Utrecht's plan to switch off the gas supply.

We bring you up to date with the latest news on how the Dutch are dealing with the coronavirus pandemic. Find out how the government is planning to ramp up the number of intensive care beds, how an ambulance got held up for 20 minutes in Belgium and why finance minister Wopke Hoekstra had to eat a large slice of humble pie. The competition for 'most awkward bodyswerve of the year' award has two strong entries this week from Mark Rutte and Hugo de Jonge. And art thieves spoiled Van Gogh's birthday by helping themselves to one of his paintings during the corona shutdown.

Our latest quarantined podcast brings you news of the latest coronavirus figures, the government's strict new social distancing rules and the efforts to step up testing. The KNVB still hopes to finish the football season and the MH17 trial is postponed to June for non-corona reasons. The virus is separating not just friends and families, but the men's and women's clothing racks in a shop on the Belgian border. And while the first corona babies may be a few months away, the storks are already playing havoc with the train services in Drenthe. (PS: want to hear us in better quality sound? Your Patreon donation can help your wish come true.)

In the first virtual edition of the DutchNews podcast this week brings you all the latest news on the shutdown, with some audio issues as we get used to our new working conditions. How are families managing home schooling? What help is the government giving to people and businesses? Can you still go outside? And should we quarantine Hugo de Jonge's shoes? We also look at the community initiatives that have sprung up to help people cope and the medical advances that might hold the key to controlling corona. And did we witness Mark Rutte's Gettysburg moment during a visit to Albert Heijn?

As the coronavirus rate among the podcast team hits 25%, we take stock of how the Netherlands is responding to the pandemic. Will isolated Brabanders produce a miracle drug? Is anyone checking on Dick Advocaat? And is cancelling Soldaat van Oranje the sign we really have reached the end of days? In non-corona news, the MH17 trial got under way and the king apologised to Indonesia for the Dutch excesses during the decolonisation war. Airbnb faces a €200 million bill after its booking fees were found to be illegal. And the tax office is under pressure to compensate around 1800 families who were wrongly accused of fraud.

This week's podcast looks ahead to the start of the MH17 trial with an interview with Asymmetrical Haircuts, a two-woman team of reporters who specialise in international justice. We also do our best to keep up with the rapid spread of coronavirus, the even faster decline of Ajax and the extensive Dutch preparations for Eurovision. And we tell you why jumping on your bike after hours is a more hazardous undertaking than you might think.

This week's podcast was recorded before news broke of the first case of coronavirus in the Netherlands. We examine how the country has been preparing as the disease spreads through Europe and ask the key questions, such as: is Brexit muppet safe? Elsewhere, there's a withering exposé of tax avoidance in the flower trade, Dutch clubs are knocked out of Europe and ophef champion Thierry Baudet threatens court action over a TV show that said what he was thinking. Our discussion looks at why Mark Rutte and the Frugal Four hit all the wrong notes at last week's EU budget summit.

As Dutch citizens are declared free from coronavirus, it seems the spirit of Brexit has infected the IND as it blunders not once, but twice on UK citizens' privacy. Dutch skaters dominate the world championships, but all the talk is of what was inside Kjeld Nuis's speedsuit. The debate on how to keep tourists and prostitutes apart in Amsterdam's red light district flared up once again. And find out why some off-colour parrots could land their breeder in jail. Our discussion this week examines why the EU's free trade deal with Canada is meeting strong resistance from Dutch opposition parties.

Ciara blew into the Netherlands this week and left a trail of fallen trees, insurance claims and cancelled bicycle races. Police stepped up their search for a blackmailer who sent four letter bombs to Dutch companies and Chinese migrants spoke out against a surge in racist behaviour linked to the coronavirus. In politics, the Ceta treaty was the subject of a long and emotionally charged debate that stretched into the early hours. And 24 chihuahuas score a victory for the underdog at the Council of State. Our discussion focuses on a thorny problem in North Brabant, where local parties are under pressure to keep the far-right FvD out of talks to form a new provincial coalition.

It's been a turbulent week of naming, blaming and shaming. KLM suspended all flights to China because of fears about the coronavirus, the government cracked down on New Year firework sales and the football authorities announced plans to tackle racist behaviour. Health minister Bruno Bruins condemned people who ostracised Asian tourists on public transport, while Thierry Baudet refused to apologise for his discredited tale of harassment by train staff. And we discuss the implications of the recent court ruling that using algorithms to identify fraud 'hot spots' breaches human rights.

As January stumbles, coughing and spluttering, into its last hours, we look back on a week bursting with apologies. Mark Rutte said sorry for the Dutch government's involvement in the Holocaust, while Arie Slob said 'sorry, there's no more money' to striking teachers. Two ministers were appointed to shake up the tax office, which is still apologising to parents over the child benefit scandal. National train operator NS, meanwhile, made no apology for its approval ratings, while the government thought twice about asking people stranded in Wuhan to pay for their emergency flights home. In our discussion we look at two contrasting approaches to drug policies by coalition parties and ask: can we mention the 'e' word this far out?

Originally this episode was intended as the bonus episode during the Christmas break but we failed to release it, mostlybecause we have the organizational skills of the Belgian railroads. Anyway, here is it and enjoy listening to Paul who tortures Molly and Gordon with Dutch popular culture, history and politics and with random facts about the Netherlands!

This week, there are too many tourists, too many sports injuries and too many pandas puns. We bring you the latest investigation into a 2009 plane crash that doesn't leave the Dutch Safety Board looking very safe and tell you why everyone you know with a PhD always looks very tired. In our discussion, we get into the child benefits scandal and what the government is doing to repair the broken system.

At last we can reveal the results of the most undemocratic vote since the Brexit referendum: our very own Ophef of the Year Awards. Mister Stikstof puts a spanner in the works of Schiphol's expansion plans and joins the chorus of VVD mayors calling for a fireworks ban. Lego is urged to take the Dutch approach to road design, while the tax office also gears up for a structural overhaul. And there are big New Year developments in the careers of an Iranian Olympian and a Dutch YouTube star.

An even more explosive New Year's Eve than usual has forced politicians to talk seriously about banning neighbourhood fireworks. We discuss whether 2019 will prove to be the tipping point in the annual debate about a tradition that leaves hundreds of people injured each year. The Netherlands pulls its troops out of Iraq, Hudson's Bay pulls out of its Dutch stores and Ajax defender Sergino Dest pulls out of the team's controversial winter tour. Plus we've got a red-hot ophef of the week, so be sure to check in with us online, unless you're a certain Dutch celebrity...

It's the final podcast of the year and that can only mean one thing: the nominations for Ophef of the Year are in. We update you on the situation in Duindorp, the tax office benefits scandal and Ajax's exit from the Champions League. There's a tall story about US basketball players bingeing on a Dutch delicacy, and Molly gets to ask Stef Blok the question on everyone's lips: who's inside the Brexit Muppet suit? Click here to vote for the Ophef of the Year: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScWkimbZwfMWanQG0w21zCNXOmKacktGvk9T5VEw7fZiB1PFg/viewform?usp=sf_link

Hot gossip, dodgy deals and bureaucratic minefields dominate this week's news. Finance minister Menno Snel comes under fire over the tax office's blunderbuss approach to suspected benefit fraud and tempers flare as The Hague cracks down on New Year beach bonfires. The detention of a teenager who was unaware he was an illegal immigrant sparks uproar, as does Klaas Dijkhoff's decision to trouser thousands of euros for leaving a cabinet post after less than a month. We bring you the fascinating story of the amateur footballer who blagged his way into four professional clubs without playing a game. And just what did Mark Rutte find so funny about Donald Trump that it triggered the president's early exit from the Nato summit?

Several long-running sagas come to a head in this week's podcast. Prime minister Mark Rutte and defence minister Ank Bijleveld face more tough questions over the deaths of 70 civilians in a bombing raid in Iraq. The tax office's sledgehammer approach to families suspected of defrauding the child support system also comes in for heavy criticism. Meanwhile, decorated war hero Marco Kroon's career is dangling by a thread after his confrontation with police during Carnaval season. And we ask the question that's been on everyone's lips: are you really breaking the law if you let your cat out? Disclaimer: We apologize for the bad audio quality, which in the absence of Molly we fully and completely blame on her.

We're a man down this week, with Gordon disappearing under mysterious circumstances. Molly and Paul hold down the fort and tell you about why Kim Kardashian West ruffled some feathers in the Netherlands, why Dutch people are still chanting racist things at football matches and how Oscar Wilde got his ring back. In the discussion, they ask what is integration and why are the Dutch so bad at it?

As the nitrogen crisis continues to hang over the country like a vaguely threatening cloud, we examine how cutting speed limits became such a hot political potato. A court orders the government to bring home the children of jihadist mothers, while the MH17 takes another twist as prosecutors implicate Russian military commanders. The start of Sinterklaas season triggers the annual tide of rage about Zwarte Piet and GroenLinks leader Jesse Klaver is named the brightest star in the Dutch political firmament. And after a six-year absence from international football tournaments, can the Netherlands seal qualification for Euro 2020 this weekend?

It's been a week of false starts and abrupt endings as Schiphol's timetable was thrown into turmoil by a trigger-happy instructor, teachers went out on strike following a double U-turn by unions, a lawyer survived a cross-border assassination attempt and Ajax salvaged a draw from a winning position after being reduced to nine men against Chelsea. We also discuss the fall-out from the recent revelations about a raid by Dutch fighter planes that killed 70 civilians in Iraq.

There's a groundhog day feel about this week's podcast as the builders' protest fills the deep tyre treads left by the farmers on the Malieveld, yet another do-or-die date is set for Brexit and our favourite football manager once again comes out of retirement for one last job. Plus we bring you an 11-year-old shaggy dog story from the Achterhoek and the lottery giveaway that made green-eyed punters see red. In our discussion we step into the legal and political minefield surrounding the issue of bringing Dutch IS fighters to justice.

Sorry folks, no podcast this week!

As 8,000 tractors roll into The Hague, the DutchNews podcast asks if the farmers will reap a bitter harvest from their rolling protests against anti-nitrogen regulations. We also try to unravel the mystery surrounding a family of cultists found living on a remote farmhouse in Drenthe, find out how undercover flower investigators blew the lid on the black tulip scam, explain how a team of engineers' hopes of winning Down Under went up in smoke and tell you why your neighbourhood is likely to be decked out in orange tat this summer.

The city of peace and justice resembles a Wild West frontier town this week after a corruption scandal and an inferno on the beach brought down The Hague's entire government. But the new sheriff, Johan Remkes, arrives with some heavy baggage as his report on the nitrogen ruling is cited as one reason why the renovation of parliament will be delayed by a year. We also update you on a scientific breakthrough for premature babies in Eindhoven, the ban on texting while cycling, the UN's view of racism in Dutch society and Oranje's quest to qualify for Euro 2020. In our discussion we look at the candidates to lead the three largest coalition parties into the next election.

This week, Paul and Molly update you on endless things going on in The Hague, from the municipality coalition falling to improper building permits. They also talk sports, protests and the Marianne Thieme leaving her post as the leader of the animal rights party. In the discussion, it's tractors, stifstof and a PSA for eating less meat.

In a week literally exploding with news, we examine how the coalition may lose its majority over a building permit, the mayor of Amsterdam got in hot water over a non-smoking gun, ministers faced tough questions about Stints and jihadist passports, and some Dutch political horse-trading left British citizens in an unstable situation. There's also our usual round-up of the week's sporting action, ophef about the Battle of Arnhem and the strange but true story of Utrecht's smallest jailbird.

There was only one question on everybody's lips on Prinsjesdag (aka Budget Day) this year, eclipsing even the speculation about Marianne Thieme's outfit or whether Wopke or Erik came up with the €50 billion special projects fund: would King Willem-Alexander be the first monarch to deliver his speech through a beard? We also reflect on the shocking murder of a lawyer on his doorstep in Amsterdam, the sad death of Fernando Ricksen at 43, a stunningly candid interview by the mayor of Amsterdam's partner and the slow process of detoxifying Zwarte Piet. Plus, find out why ophef rang out round the capital when one new resident complained to the council about his noisy neighbours.

It's been a week of courtroom drama in the Netherlands as Geert Wilders calls for his race-baiting trial to be thrown out for political interference, a doctor is cleared of murder in a landmark euthanasia case, a woman seeks redress for having her baby taken away from the state in the 1960s and a key MH17 witness becomes a pawn in a prisoner exchange. We also look back at Oranje's historic 4-2 win over Germany and try to explain why the government paid millions of euros for the royal family's tables, cabinets and ping-pong bats.

The podcast team look back over a summer of blistering heat and bristling with ophef: who poisoned the plants in Thierry Baudet's office? Why does Haarlem have a problem with globetrotters? And was the king wise to come out as a redbeard? We also look at how Amsterdam became a paradise for cocaine dealers, why the Labour party has done a U-turn on student funding and Ronald Koeman's return to Hamburg 31 years after he wiped the floor with the Germans.

There's plenty to shout about in our last podcast before the summer break as five cities bid to host next year's Eurovision, a children's playground is forced to close because of complaints about noise, a proposed Holocaust memorial sparks local protests and the Dutch women's football team are cheered all the way to the final. In our discussion we take the pulse of the coalition at the halfway point and ask if it will make it to the finish line.

It's been a week of big-name casualties as the law finally caught up with celebrity gangster Willem Holleeder and Frans Timmermans saw a top European job slip through his fingers. While Queen Maxima came under fire for her silence in a meeting with Saudi Arabia's crown prince, one cyclist in Groningen probably wishes she'd kept quiet when police stopped and fined her for using her phone. And it's been a busy week for Amsterdam's mayor Femke Halsema, who announced plans to recognise anti-slavery campaigners in the city's street names and tackle the problems caused by tourists in the red light district. In our discussion we ask if the Dutch women can go one better than their male counterparts at the football World Cup.