THE HAGUE: Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte embarked on a fourth term on Monday, leading a coalition that took office amid a nationwide coronavirus lockdown and policy challenges ranging from climate change and housing shortages to the future of agriculture.

King Willem-Alexander formally swore in the new government at a socially-distanced ceremony in the ballroom of the Noordeinde Palace in The Hague.

The ceremony came after a record-breaking coalition formation process following the March 17 general election that highlighted deep divisions in the splintered Dutch political landscape. Rutte, 54, has already led three coalitions and is now set to become the Netherlands longest-serving prime minister despite only narrowly surviving a no-confidence motion in parliament in April.

He introduced his new team one-by-one to the king before they were formally sworn in by agreeing to the oath of office and then posing for a photo. Willem-Alexander congratulated the new ministers and wished them good health and wisdom in their new jobs.

Among the new faces are Health and Sport Minister Ernst Kuipers, a physician who moves into politics after holding senior positions in the health care sector, including leading a national organization that facilitated the spreading out of patients among hospitals amid the pandemic.

Also new to Dutch politics is Robbert Dijkgraaf, a respected academic who was named Education Minster and returns to the Netherlands after serving since 2012 as director of the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey.

Published in Dawn, January 11th, 2022