A notable change in the Democracy Forum faction. Freek Jansen, who was recently re-elected, will be replaced in the coming months by Pepijn van Houwelingen, who did not receive enough votes in the November elections.
The exchange will last six months and is intended to help Van Houwelingen prepare for the parliamentary investigation into Corona. Party leader Thierry Baudet announced in a statement on the party’s YouTube channel that Jansen will take his seat again.
It is common for MPs to be replaced due to pregnancy or illness, but it is not common for MPs to be replaced temporarily for another reason. By the way, this is allowed according to the Parliament.com website. “A party may mutually agree that, after a period of time, their ‘successor’ will make way for the person they replace.” This last one happened at PvdA in 1977.
Parliamentary investigation into Corona
At the end of 2021, the House of Representatives unanimously approved a parliamentary inquiry into the response to the Corona crisis. An ad hoc preparatory committee then began drafting a research proposal, but it did not receive sufficient support in the Parliament. As a result, it looked as if there would be no polls, but the PVV motion passed by the House of Representatives last month changed that.
Van Houwelingen was part of the preliminary committee. In times of corona, the forum has firmly rejected government measures that are said to restrict freedom. For example, FvD has repeatedly opposed lockdowns and the use of QR codes as proof of vaccination.
Source: NOS
Emma Fitzgerald is an accomplished political journalist and author at The Nation View. With a background in political science and international relations, she has a deep understanding of the political landscape and the forces that shape it.
