Jan Peter Balkenende: Difference between revisions

Jan Peter Balkenende
Jan Peter Balkenende
49th Prime Minister of the Netherlands
	In office; 22 July 2002 – 14 October 2010
Monarch	Beatrix
Deputy	See list Eduard Bomhoff; Johan Remkes; Roelf de Boer; Gerrit Zalm; Thom de Graaf; Laurens Jan Brinkhorst; Wouter Bos; André Rouvoet;
Preceded by	Wim Kok
Succeeded by	Mark Rutte
Leader of the Christian Democratic Appeal
	In office; 1 October 2001 – 9 June 2010
Preceded by	Jaap de Hoop Scheffer
Succeeded by	Maxime Verhagen
Leader of the Christian Democratic Appeal in the House of Representatives
	In office; 30 November 2006 – 21 February 2007
Preceded by	Maxime Verhagen
Succeeded by	Pieter van Geel
	In office; 30 January 2003 – 21 May 2003
Preceded by	Maxime Verhagen
Succeeded by	Maxime Verhagen
	In office; 1 October 2001 – 11 July 2002
Preceded by	Jaap de Hoop Scheffer
Succeeded by	Maxime Verhagen
Member of the House of Representatives
	In office; 30 November 2006 – 22 February 2007
	In office; 30 January 2003 – 27 May 2003
	In office; 19 May 1998 – 22 July 2002
Personal details
Born	Jan Pieter Balkenende, Jr.; 7 May 1956 (age 68); Biezelinge, Netherlands
Political party	Christian Democratic Appeal
Spouse	Bianca Hoogendijk (1996–present)
Children	Amelie
Alma mater	Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
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Jan Pieter "Jan Peter" Balkenende, Jr. (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈjɑn ˈpeːtər ˈbɑlkənˌɛndə] ^ⓘ; born 7 May 1956) is a retired Dutch politician of the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA). He served as Prime Minister of the Netherlands from 22 July 2002 until 14 October 2010.

Balkenende, a jurist by occupation, worked for the Dutch Academic Senate and the Christian Democratic Appeal think tank from 1982 until 1998. Balkenende became a professor of Christian theology at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam in 1993. He was elected to the House of Representatives after the Dutch general election of 1998, serving from 19 May 1998 until 22 July 2002. After the then Leader of the Christian Democratic Appeal and Parliamentary leader in the House of Representatives Jaap de Hoop Scheffer stepped down after an internal power struggle between him and then party chair Marnix van Rij, Balkenende was selected to succeed him in both positions, and became the Lijsttrekker (top candidate) for the Dutch general election of 2002. The Christian Democratic Appeal became the surprising winner of the election, gaining 14 seats becoming the largest party in the House of Representatives. This success was in part owed to Balkenende's neutral attitude in the debates with Pim Fortuyn, the eponymous leader of the Pim Fortuyn List party who was assassinated during the national election campaign on 6 May 2002.

The following cabinet formation resulted in a coalition agreement with the Christian Democratic Appeal, Pim Fortuyn List (LPF) and the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) which formed the First Balkenende cabinet with Balkenende becoming Prime Minister of the Netherlands taking office on 22 July 2002. The cabinet Balkenende I collapsed on 16 October after just 87 days in office after internal conflicts within the Pim Fortuyn List that destabilized the government. For the Dutch general election of 2003, Balkenende again as lijsttrekker won one seat and the following cabinet formation resulted in a coalition agreement with the Christian Democratic Appeal, the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy and the Democrats 66 (D66) which formed the Second Balkenende cabinet. On 29 June 2006 the Democrats 66 retracted their support for the cabinet Balkenende II after criticizing the way Minister for Integration and Immigration Rita Verdonk (VVD) had handled the crisis around the naturalization of her party fellow elected to the House of Representatives Ayaan Hirsi Ali. On 7 July 2006 a rump cabinet Third Balkenende cabinet was formed and stayed in office until the Dutch general election of 2006. Balkenende again as lijsttrekker lost three seats but the Christian Democratic Appeal remained by far the largest party with 41 seats. The following 2006–2007 cabinet formation resulted in a coalition agreement with the Christian Democratic Appeal, the Labour Party (PvdA) and the ChristianUnion (CU) that formed the Fourth Balkenende cabinet. On 20 February 2010 the Labour Party retracted their support for the cabinet Balkenende IV after a disagreement over the extension of the ISAF mission in Afghanistan. For the Dutch general election of 2010, Balkenende was appointed again as lijsttrekker, but his party lost 20 seats; he resigned his position as Leader of the Christian Democratic Appeal on 9 June, taking political responsibility for the disappointing results in the election. Balkenende remained Prime Minister of the Netherlands until the First Rutte cabinet was installed on 14 October 2010.

After his premiership, Balkenende retired from active politics at the age of fifty-four and became a Partner Corporate Responsibility for Ernst & Young and a professor of Governance, Institutions and Internationalization at the Erasmus University Rotterdam.

Early life

Jan Pieter Balkenende, Jr. was born on 7 May 1956, in Biezelinge in the Netherlands Province of Zeeland in Reformed family, the son of Jan Pieter Balkenende, Sr. a cereal grains merchant and Thona Johanna Sandee, a teacher. During his childhood, Balkenende was an active supporter of the Dutch football team PSV Eindhoven, along with his father he frequented many matches. He also regularly visited the local music school and theatre. Balkenende went to a Reformed Protestant primary school in Kapelle. He attended secondary school at the "Christian Lyceum for Zeeland" in Goes, graduating in 1974.^[1] He studied at the Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam, where he received a Master of Arts degree in history in 1980, an Master of Laws degree in Law in 1982, and finally a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Law in 1992.^[1] Balkenende resides with his wife, Bianca Hoogendijk, and his daughter, Amelie, in Capelle aan den IJssel, a suburb of Rotterdam. During his tenure as Prime Minister, he did not use the Catshuis, the formal residency of the Prime Minister.

Early political career

He began his career on the staff of the research institute of the CDA and as a city councilman in Amstelveen. In 1992 he received his PhD with a thesis on "Governance regulation and social organisations" (Overheidsregelgeving en maatschappelijke organisaties), a strongly inspired by the Communitarian ideas of Amitai Etzioni.^[2] One year later in 1993, he became an extraordinary professor of Christian-Social Thought at the Free University of Amsterdam.

Balkenende first entered the House of Representatives on 19 May 1998 while the CDA was in opposition. He became the CDA's financial spokesman and was also involved with social affairs, justice, and domestic affairs. In this role he advocated a substantial reduction of the national debt and sound public finances.

He was elected Chairman of the CDA parliamentary fraction on 1 October 2001, succeeding Jaap de Hoop Scheffer. On 3 November 2001, he was appointed lijsttrekker for the CDA in the tumultuous May 2002 parliamentary elections. These elections restored the CDA's former position as the largest political party in the Dutch parliament.

Prime Minister

Balkenende has been prime minister of four successive cabinets.

Balkenende I

On 4 July 2002 Queen Beatrix asked Balkenende to form a new government after the general elections following the resignation of Prime Minister Wim Kok. This cabinet is known as Balkenende I. The coalition cabinet included the Pim Fortuyn List (LPF) party, whose leader (Pim Fortuyn) was assassinated just days before the election. It collapsed after just 87 days in office because of internal conflicts within the LPF that destabilised the government.

Balkenende II

After early elections in 2003 Balkenende formed his second government with: Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA), the liberal People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) and the progressive liberal D66. Once again leader of a centre-right coalition, Balkenende's policies centred on reform of the Dutch public services, social security, pre-pension facilities, public health, reducing crime, a tough immigration policy and historically large cuts in public spending. The measures gave rise to large public anger and bad results in opinion polls for his CDA party. While his party remained the largest Dutch delegation in the European Parliament after the European Elections, beating the general expectation of a huge loss in parliamentary seats, the party suffered strong losses during Dutch municipal elections of 2006, losing their position as the largest party in many municipalities. Despite his unpopularity among Dutch voters (polls in 2006 showed that only 26–33% of the voters had confidence in him as prime minister), his position as leader of the CDA remained stable. In the beginning of 2006, some CDA members tried to replace Balkenende as leader with minister Cees Veerman. Veerman did not accept this and offered his support to Balkenende. Balkenende's popularity recovered since then, surpassing that of his main competitor Wouter Bos in the autumn of 2006. By then, 53% preferred Balkenende as Prime Minister while 40% preferred Bos.^[3] This switch in public opinion is sometimes explained by the steady recovery of the Dutch economy during the last year of his administration and the positive effects of the reformed policy of the Balkenende cabinet, combined with declining confidence in Bos as a good alternative for the position of prime-minister.

On 1 July 2004 Balkenende took up the rotating presidency of the European Union.

Balkenende III

On 30 June 2006 D66, the smallest coalition party, withdrew its support of the government over the way immigration minister Rita Verdonk had handled the crisis around the naturalization of Dutch MP Ayaan Hirsi Ali. Balkenende resigned for the second time as Prime Minister, announced early elections and presented his third government a week later. This rump cabinet, formed of a minority coalition of CDA and VVD, stayed in office until the elections of 22 November 2006.

Balkenende IV

Though his old coalition partners VVD and D66 fared badly in the parliamentary elections of 2006, Balkenende managed to defend the dominant position of his CDA. Needing alternative coalition partners to form a new majority government, he formed a social-Christian coalition with the Dutch Labour Party (PVDA) and the orthodox-Protestant ChristianUnion. This Fourth Balkenende cabinet is a coalition cabinet of the Netherlands, formed by Balkenende, who was appointed formateur by Queen Beatrix on 9 February 2007.^[4] His cabinet was announced on 13 February and was scheduled to be in office until 2011, but it fell in the early morning of 20 February 2010 as the result of disagreement between the majority of the parliament and the coalition partners CDA and PvdA over the extension of the Dutch ISAF-mission in Afghanistan.^[5] In contrast to the formation of a new caretaker cabinet with full responsibility (Balkenende III after the fall of Balkenende II), Balkenende IV continued as a demissionary cabinet, a caretaker cabinet with limited responsibility.

2010 Election and resignation

Despite serious criticism by former prime ministers from the CDA, Balkenende was the Christian Democratic Appeal Lijsttrekker for the Dutch general election of 2010.^[6] Balkenende raised mild controversy during his campaign for the 2010 Dutch elections. While appearing in a television show, Balkenende was asked by a female presenter what parties he would most likely form a coalition with. Balkenende first gave evasive answers, then when asked again by the presenter, responded saying "U kijkt zo lief" (English: "You look so cute"). The comment was regarded as sexist and criticized by several people, including Opzij chief-editor Margriet van der Linden and GroenLinks leader Femke Halsema (who stated that "[the prime minister] deserves a knee to the groin" (in Dutch: "een knietje verdient")).^[7] Balkenende apologized for the comment later.^[8]

On 9 June 2010, Balkenende resigned his position as leader of the CDA as well as his seat in the newly elected parliament, taking political responsibility for the CDA's disappointing election results in the 2010 general election.^[9]

Other issues

In 2004, during his second cabinet, Balkenende was diagnosed with necrotizing fasciitis. He was treated through surgical debridement and made a full recovery after several weeks in hospital.

On 4 June 2005, the Belgian Minister of Foreign Affairs Karel De Gucht said in the Flemish newspaper Het Laatste Nieuws (The Latest News) that "Balkenende is a mix of Harry Potter and a petty rigid bourgeois mentality". This comparison caused a small diplomatic controversy, and the Belgian ambassador had to apologise to Ben Bot, the Dutch Minister of Foreign Affairs.^[10] Retired deputy prime minister Hans Wiegel commented he preferred Harry Potter to the Manneken Pis.

Balkenende has a close relationship with the Dutch people from Suriname and the Netherlands Antilles. He has visited several Keti Koti celebrations in recent years.

He was a member of the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands and since 1 May 2004 a member of the Protestant Church in the Netherlands.

Awards

Golden Honorary Medal, of the municipality Amstelveen (Netherlands, 30 May 1998)

Honorary degrees

Honorary doctorate in Laws, Hope College (Holland, Michigan, United States, 7 September 2012)
Honorary doctorate in Human Letters, Hofstra University (Hempstead, New York, United States, 22 May 2011)
Honorary doctorate in Sociology, Yonsei University (Seoul, South Korea, 27 April 2010)
Honorary doctorate in Systems, Design and Management, Keio University (Tokyo, Japan, 27 oktober 2009)
Honorary doctorate in Theology, Károli Gáspár University of the Hungarian Reformed Church (Budapest, Hungary, 10 October 2005)

Decorations

BEL.:Commander in the Order of Leopold, 2016. ^[11]

Ribbon bar	Honour	Date & Comment
Foreign honours
	Grand Cross of the Order of the Southern Cross (Brazil)
	Grand Cross of the Order of Bernardo O'Higgins (Chile)
	Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg
	Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
	Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland
	Commander Grand Cross of the Order of the Polar Star (Sweden)
	Grand Cordon of the Order of Independence (Jordan)
	Companion of the Order of the Star of Ghana
National honours
Ribbon bar	Honour	Date & Comment
	Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Orange-Nassau	23 November 2010

References

^ ^a ^b "Mr. Dr. J.P. Balkenende" (in Dutch). Leiden University. Retrieved 7 June 2007.
^ "The Political Center under Pressure: Elections in the Netherlands" (PDF).
^ "Balkenende als premier populairder dan Bos" (in Dutch). Elsevier. 10 September 2006. Archived from the original on 10 February 2008. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |dead-url= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
^ "Balkenende benoemd tot formateur" (in Dutch). NOS.nl. 9 February 2007. Archived from the original on 11 February 2007. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
^ Tyler, John (20 February 2010). "Dutch government falls over Afghanistan mission". Radio Netherlands Worldwide. Retrieved 20 February 2010.
^ Template:Nl icon Balkenende weer lijsttrekker CDA
^ "Balkenende excuseert zich voor 'u kijkt zo lief'" (in Dutch). Nederlands Dagblad. 27 May 2010.
^ "Wat zeg je terug op "U kijkt zo lief"?" (in Dutch). NRC Next. 27 May 2010.
^ De Telegraaf. "Balkenende weg als CDA-leider". Retrieved 9 June 2010.
^ "Belgian Potter jibe upsets Dutch". BBC News. 6 June 2005.
^ http://www.telegraaf.nl/binnenland/26170856/__Balkenende_in_Leopoldsorde__.html

External links

Official

Template:Nl icon Prof.Dr. J.P. (Jan Peter) Balkenende Parlement & Politiek
Template:Nl icon Kabinet Balkenende I Rijksoverheid
Template:Nl icon Kabinet-Balkenende II Rijksoverheid
Template:Nl icon Kabinet-Balkenende III Rijksoverheid
Template:Nl icon Kabinet-Balkenende IV Rijksoverheid

Party political offices
Preceded by Jaap de Hoop Scheffer	Leader of the Christian Democratic Appeal 2001–2010	Succeeded by Maxime Verhagen
Preceded by Jaap de Hoop Scheffer	Leader of the Christian Democratic Appeal in the House of Representatives 2001–2002
Preceded by Maxime Verhagen	Leader of the Christian Democratic Appeal in the House of Representatives 2003
Preceded by Maxime Verhagen	Leader of the Christian Democratic Appeal in the House of Representatives 2006–2007	Succeeded by Pieter van Geel
Political offices
Preceded by Wim Kok	Prime Minister of the Netherlands 2002–2010	Succeeded by Mark Rutte
Preceded by Wim Kok	Minister of General Affairs 2002–2010	Succeeded by Mark Rutte

[biography-1] "Mr. Dr. J.P. Balkenende" (in Dutch). Leiden University. Retrieved 7 June 2007.

[2] "The Political Center under Pressure: Elections in the Netherlands" (PDF).

[3] "Balkenende als premier populairder dan Bos" (in Dutch). Elsevier. 10 September 2006. Archived from the original on 10 February 2008. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |dead-url= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)

[4] "Balkenende benoemd tot formateur" (in Dutch). NOS.nl. 9 February 2007. Archived from the original on 11 February 2007. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)

[5] Tyler, John (20 February 2010). "Dutch government falls over Afghanistan mission". Radio Netherlands Worldwide. Retrieved 20 February 2010.

[6] Template:Nl icon Balkenende weer lijsttrekker CDA

[7] "Balkenende excuseert zich voor 'u kijkt zo lief'" (in Dutch). Nederlands Dagblad. 27 May 2010.

[8] "Wat zeg je terug op "U kijkt zo lief"?" (in Dutch). NRC Next. 27 May 2010.

[9] De Telegraaf. "Balkenende weg als CDA-leider". Retrieved 9 June 2010.

[10] "Belgian Potter jibe upsets Dutch". BBC News. 6 June 2005.

[11] ttp://www.telegraaf.nl/binnenland/26170856/__Balkenende_in_Leopoldsorde__.html

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@@ Line 95: / Line 95: @@
 ===Balkenende IV===
 {{Main article|Fourth Balkenende cabinet}}
-Though his old coalition partners VVD and D66 fared badly in the parliamentary elections of 2006, Balkenende managed to defend the dominant position of his CDA. Needing alternative coalition partners to form a new majority government, he formed a social-Christian coalition with the [[Dutch Labour Party]] (PVDA) and the orthodox-Protestant [[ChristianUnion]]. This [[Fourth Balkenende cabinet]] is a coalition cabinet of the [[Netherlands]], [[2006–2007 Dutch cabinet formation|formed]] by Balkenende, who was appointed ''[[formateur]]'' by [[Beatrix of the Netherlands|Queen Beatrix]] on 9 February 2007.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.nos.nl/nos/artikelen/2007/02/art000001C74C011F6335E9.html |title = Balkenende benoemd tot formateur |date = 9 February 2007 |publisher = [[Nederlandse Omroep Stichting|NOS]].nl|language=nl}}</ref> His cabinet was announced on 13 February and was scheduled to be in office until 2011, but it fell in the early morning of 20 February 2010 as the result of disagreement between the majority of the parliament and the coalition partners CDA and PvdA over the extension of the Dutch [[International Security Assistance Force|ISAF]]-mission in [[Afghanistan]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.rnw.nl/english/article/dutch-government-falls-over-afghanistan-mission|title=Dutch government falls over Afghanistan mission|last=Tyler|first=John|date=20 February 2010|publisher=[[Radio Netherlands Worldwide]]|accessdate=20 February 2010}}</ref> In contrast to the formation of a new caretaker cabinet with full responsibility (Balkenende III after the fall of Balkenende II), Balkenende IV continued as a demissionary cabinet, a caretaker cabinet with limited responsibility.
+Though his old coalition partners VVD and D66 fared badly in the parliamentary elections of 2006, Balkenende managed to defend the dominant position of his CDA. Needing alternative coalition partners to form a new majority government, he formed a social-Christian coalition with the [[Dutch Labour Party]] (PVDA) and the orthodox-Protestant [[ChristianUnion]]. This [[Fourth Balkenende cabinet]] is a coalition cabinet of the [[Netherlands]], [[2006–2007 Dutch cabinet formation|formed]] by Balkenende, who was appointed ''[[formateur]]'' by [[Beatrix of the Netherlands|Queen Beatrix]] on 9 February 2007.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.nos.nl/nos/artikelen/2007/02/art000001C74C011F6335E9.html |title = Balkenende benoemd tot formateur |date = 9 February 2007 |publisher = [[Nederlandse Omroep Stichting|NOS]].nl |language = nl |deadurl = yes |archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20070211174622/http://www.nos.nl/nos/artikelen/2007/02/art000001C74C011F6335E9.html |archivedate = 11 February 2007 |df = dmy-all }}</ref> His cabinet was announced on 13 February and was scheduled to be in office until 2011, but it fell in the early morning of 20 February 2010 as the result of disagreement between the majority of the parliament and the coalition partners CDA and PvdA over the extension of the Dutch [[International Security Assistance Force|ISAF]]-mission in [[Afghanistan]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.rnw.nl/english/article/dutch-government-falls-over-afghanistan-mission|title=Dutch government falls over Afghanistan mission|last=Tyler|first=John|date=20 February 2010|publisher=[[Radio Netherlands Worldwide]]|accessdate=20 February 2010}}</ref> In contrast to the formation of a new caretaker cabinet with full responsibility (Balkenende III after the fall of Balkenende II), Balkenende IV continued as a demissionary cabinet, a caretaker cabinet with limited responsibility.
 ==2010 Election and resignation==

Authority control databases
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v t e Demissionary Fourth Balkenende cabinet (2010)
Preceded by: Fourth Balkenende cabinet Succeeded by: First Rutte cabinet
Prime Minister	Jan Peter Balkenende (General Affairs)
Deputy Prime Minister	André Rouvoet (Education, Culture and Science and Youth and Family)
Ministers	Ernst Hirsch Ballin (Interior and Kingdom Relations and Justice) Maxime Verhagen (Foreign Affairs and Development Cooperation) Jan Kees de Jager (Finance) Maria van der Hoeven (Economic Affairs) Eimert van Middelkoop (Defence and Housing and Integration) Ab Klink (Health, Welfare and Sport) Camiel Eurlings (Transport, Public Works and Water Management) Gerda Verburg (Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality) Piet Hein Donner (Social Affairs and Employment) Tineke Huizinga (Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment)
State Secretaries	Ank Bijleveld (Interior and Kingdom Relations) Jack de Vries (Defence) Marja van Bijsterveldt (Education, Culture and Science)

v t e Fourth Balkenende cabinet (2007–2010)
Preceded by: Third Balkenende cabinet Succeeded by: Demissionary Fourth Balkenende cabinet
Prime Minister	Jan Peter Balkenende General Affairs
Deputy Prime Ministers	Wouter Bos (Finance) André Rouvoet (Youth and Family)
Ministers	Guusje ter Horst (Interior and Kingdom Relations) Maxime Verhagen (Foreign Affairs) Ernst Hirsch Ballin (Justice) Maria van der Hoeven (Economic Affairs) Eimert van Middelkoop (Defence) Ab Klink (Health, Welfare and Sport) Ronald Plasterk (Education, Culture and Science) Camiel Eurlings (Transport, Public Works and Water Management) Gerda Verburg (Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality) Piet Hein Donner (Social Affairs and Employment) Jacqueline Cramer (Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment)
Ministers without portfolio	Ella Vogelaar (Housing and Integration) (2007–2008) Eberhard van der Laan (Housing and Integration) (from 2008) Bert Koenders (Development Cooperation)
State Secretaries	Ank Bijleveld (Interior and Kingdom Relations) Frans Timmermans (Foreign Affairs) Jan Kees de Jager (Finance) Nebahat Albayrak (Justice) Frank Heemskerk (Economic Affairs) Cees van der Knaap (Defence) (2007) Jack de Vries (Defence) (from 2007) Jet Bussemaker (Health, Welfare and Sport) Marja van Bijsterveldt (Education, Culture and Science) Sharon Dijksma (Education, Culture and Science) Tineke Huizinga (Transport, Public Works and Water Management) Ahmed Aboutaleb (Social Affairs and Employment) (2007–2008) Jetta Klijnsma (Social Affairs and Employment) (from 2008)

v t e Third Balkenende cabinet (2006–2007)
Preceded by: Second Balkenende cabinet Succeeded by: Fourth Balkenende cabinet
Prime Minister	Jan Peter Balkenende (General Affairs)
Deputy Prime Minister	Gerrit Zalm (Finance)
Ministers	Johan Remkes (Interior) Ben Bot (Foreign Affairs) Piet Hein Donner (Justice) (2006) Rita Verdonk (Justice) (ad interim) Ernst Hirsch Ballin (Justice) (from 2006) Joop Wijn (Economic Affairs) Henk Kamp (Defence) Hans Hoogervorst (Health, Welfare and Sport) Maria van der Hoeven (Education, Culture and Science) Karla Peijs (Transport, Public Works and Water Management) Cees Veerman (Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality) Aart Jan de Geus (Social Affairs and Employment) Sybilla Dekker (Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment) (2006) Pieter Winsemius (Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment) (from 2006)
Ministers without portfolio	Rita Verdonk (Integration and Immigration) Atzo Nicolaï (Government Reform and Kingdom Relations) Agnes van Ardenne (Development Cooperation)
State secretaries	Karien van Gennip (Economic Affairs) Cees van der Knaap (Defence) Clémence Ross-van Dorp (Health, Welfare and Sport) Bruno Bruins (Education, Culture and Science) Melanie Schultz van Haegen (Transport, Public Works and Water Management) Henk van Hoof (Social Affairs and Employment) Pieter van Geel (Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment)