Oops! Dutch politician forgets draft for coalition agreement in train

We all know the frustrating feeling of forgetting our favourite gloves, umbrella, or book on the train. It’s annoying, but not a huge deal. But what happens when a politician forgets top-secret papers relating to the government formation in the coach?

Well, that’s something Gert-Jan Segers can now answer.

Three weeks ago, the leader of the ChristenUnie party forgot a draft coalition agreement between the VVD (Volkspartij voor Vrijheid en Democratie) and CDA (Christen-Democratische Partij) in the train on his way to The Hague, reports the NOS.

Hoping that a good samaritan would return the piece, the politician kept his head low. The piece was eventually found — but given to the newspaper, De Volkskrant. Are we really surprised? 😅

Segers apologises

In the inevitable story that followed, De Volkskrant writes that they obtained the piece because “a person involved in the formation” recently left it in the train. This morning, Segers admitted that it was him.

“The stupidest thing that could happen to you… I travel by train up and down to The Hague. That is a nice way to travel and almost always goes well. But now things went very wrong. I’m human and I’ve done something really stupid. Sorry..”

What did it say?

Luckily for Sergers, nothing too juicy. NOS’ political reporter says that “The document does not have the status of a kind of coalition agreement, because there is no elaboration, no financial substantiation and the groups have not agreed to it. But it is striking and interesting in terms of content.”

It was written by members of the VVD and the CDA and covered topics ranging from the housing crisis to opening up the Netherlands for more migrants, to a scheme to buy out farmers. In the piece, the party D66 was considered as a negotiating partner.

Both Segers and Rutte, however, emphasize that the piece has no influence on the formation of a new cabinet. 💁‍♀️

What do you think of Sergers’ blunder? Tell us in the comments below!

Image: Anne Paul Roukema/Wikimedia Commons/CC3.0 (modified)

Christine Stein Hededam 🇩🇰
Christine Stein Hededam 🇩🇰
A Dane with a special place in her heart for Minnesota, Christine is now falling in love with everything Dutch. Between finishing her bachelor’s degree, learning Dutch, and doing yoga teacher training, you will find her wandering about the Hague. Always up for visiting new places, she loves to explore the Netherlands with friends and takes pride in scoping out cute cafés (wherein to discuss books, big plans, and food).

1 COMMENT

  1. Not the first time that so-called top secret documents were left on the train by a politician. Do they do this on purpose or do they not think or care about the consequences.

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