The Weekly Forum - 5 March 2026
09 maart 2026 | Forum for Democracy Intl
For the last fifty years, the Netherlands has been governed by essentially the same political parties. The various coalitions have included three or four political formations in different constellations. Following the interlude in which Geert Wilders' Freedom Party was in power, the old party cartel has now reasserted its grip. Rob Jetten’s government is composed of three parties who have been governing the country since the early 1970s – for half a century. It is hardly surprising that nothing ever changes after an election. This time is no different. The new government is committed to climate craziness, immigration, high tax and war. Only FVD is different: it wants lower and simpler taxes, growth, innovation, remigration and a foreign policy based on national interest. Political systems in Europe structurally breed mediocrity – no one exceptional could possibly survive in the stifling and brain-dead world of European politics - and mediocrity does one thing very well. It stamps out excellence. As Anatole France said of the Republic, it governs badly but defends itself very well. Lidewij de Vos, FVD’s parliamentary leader, laid this all out with wonderful clarity in her formal statement to Parliament following the swearing-in of the ‘new’ government.
A good illustration of how nothing will change is the recent revelation that the government is requiring 38,000 new homes to be built to house asylum seekers. This is in spite of the fact that the ‘new’ coalition has promised to crack down on immigration. The truth is that the asylum racket has been running for decades and there is no end in sight. Money for the asylum seekers, lots of jobs for life for the civil servants running asylum and immigration policy - everyone’s a winner except for the taxpayer, the people who find asylum seekers living next door to them, and those Dutch people who are in serious need of housing. Tom Russcher, FVD’s newest MP, put down a series of questions to the Immigration minister about this, of which the funniest is the last one: ‘Is the government prepared to revise Dutch asylum policy completely.’ Don’t hold your breath for the answer!
Read Tom Russcher’s questions here
John Laughland, FVD International’s director, was recently Stanislav Krapivnik’s guest on his podcast, ‘In the Eyes of Truth’. Stanislav is originally from Eastern Ukraine but grew up in the US and served in the US army; he now lives in Russia. They discussed the war in Ukraine, of course – although it was mainly John asking the questions at that point - but also the dire state of the European Union. What is the role of Germany in the EU? What is Britain’s role in Europe now after Brexit? And what can we expect from the war with Russia?
Simon Elmer was our guest on The Forum this week, to discuss his new book ‘The Great Replacement and the Islamisation of Britain’. Simon is convinced that Britain is being targeted by Islam and that Muslims already wield a decisive influence over British political life.