The Dutch government resigns after the childcare benefits scandal

LONDON – The entire Dutch government resigned collectively on Friday following a scandal involving the mismanagement of childcare funds, which has left thousands of families in financial difficulties.

An investigation revealed in December that tax officials had wrongly accused thousands of working families of fraud and ordered them to reimburse childcare benefits between 2013 and 2019. The event was described as an “unprecedented injustice” by some. Dutch parliamentarians.

The revelation led to the resignation on Thursday of opposition leader Lodewijk Asscher, who was the minister responsible for social affairs in the previous administration.

The government led by Prime Minister Mark Rutte, in power since 2017, decided on Friday to accept responsibility and collectively leave office behind the scandal.

Rutte, speaking at a news conference, said he would continue to lead the Covid-19 emergency response with caretaker status.

The Netherlands was already due to hold new parliamentary elections in March, but the government’s resignation comes at a difficult time. The country is blocked nationwide and has had nearly 1 million Covid-19 infections and 12,875 deaths since the start of the health emergency, according to Johns Hopkins University. The Netherlands must also prepare a plan on how to revive the post-pandemic economy.

Rutte said earlier that the government’s resignation would not be useful at this time, as the nation needs stability to deal with the pandemic, Politico reported. However, this is not the first time that a Dutch administration has resigned collectively to show a shared responsibility.

The families involved in the case have filed charges against five politicians this week, including current finance minister Wopke Hoekstra.

Given the proximity of the general election, ministers could end up in their roles until voters go to the polls.