European Commission Vice President Frans Timmermans is to run for the Dutch premiership, local media reported on Thursday.
Mr Timmermans, 62, has been 10 years in Brussels and aims to lead a newly formed coalition between his centre-left Labour, or PvdA, and GroenLinks, or Green-Left, parties ahead of parliamentary elections in November.
“I want to became prime minister, because I think together we can do politics differently than how it had been done in the past few years,” Mr Timmermans told the NOS public broadcaster.
“I have told the parties that I would like to be the top candidate on their electoral list.”
Mr Timmermans has informed the EU Commission's President Ursula von der Leyen of his decision, a representative told The National by email.
The representative clarified that this does not mean he will have to leave his position immediately.
“At this stage, the executive vice president's candidacy remains hypothetical, as it is now subject to an internal party process,” the representative said.
“Pending the conclusion of this process, there is no impact on his availability as member of the college and he continues his work as executive vice president for the European Green Deal.”
Mr Timmermans is in charge of the EU's Green Deal – its wide-ranging package of policies on climate change and the environment.
He has played a key role in the build-up to Cop28 and in EU legislation aimed at achieving the continent's carbon neutrality by 2050.
The commission's code of conduct specifies that a member must withdraw from their role for the entire period of active implication in a national political campaign.
Along with EU energy and environment ministers, Mr Timmermans held a meeting last week in Spain with Dr Sultan Al Jaber, UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and President-designate of Cop28.
“I know that he’s ambitious. I know that he wants to take us forward,” Mr Timmermans said of Dr Al Jaber.
“I know that he’s also going to be very clear on reducing unabated fossil fuels which is an important element of getting us to net zero. I know that he also has clear ideas on adaptation, on finance, on loss and damage.”
Mr Timmermans is a well-known figure in the Netherlands, having served as foreign minister from 2012 to 2014 in the previous cabinet of departing Prime Minister Mark Rutte.
He had been tipped as a top candidate to lead the Dutch parties following his campaign for European social democrats in the 2019 election, which was widely regarded as a success.
Mr Timmermans, who speaks English, German, French, Italian and Russian in addition to his native Dutch, is known as a skilled negotiator during international climate negotiations.
How well Mr Timmermans will perform in Dutch politics is an open question, but in a poll published on Thursday, 39 per cent of Dutch voters said they trusted him to lead the next government.
Agencies contributed to this report
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Produced: Lionsgate Films, Shanghai Ryui Entertainment, Street Light Entertainment
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Cast: Ed Skrein, Woody Harrelson, Dennis Quaid, Aaron Eckhart, Luke Evans, Nick Jonas, Mandy Moore, Darren Criss
Rating: 3.5/5 stars
Newcastle United 0 Tottenham Hotspur 2
Tottenham (Alli 61'), Davies (70')
Red card Jonjo Shelvey (Newcastle)
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One in nine do not have enough to eat
Created in 1961, the World Food Programme is pledged to fight hunger worldwide as well as providing emergency food assistance in a crisis.
One of the organisation’s goals is the Zero Hunger Pledge, adopted by the international community in 2015 as one of the 17 Sustainable Goals for Sustainable Development, to end world hunger by 2030.
The WFP, a branch of the United Nations, is funded by voluntary donations from governments, businesses and private donations.
Almost two thirds of its operations currently take place in conflict zones, where it is calculated that people are more than three times likely to suffer from malnutrition than in peaceful countries.
It is currently estimated that one in nine people globally do not have enough to eat.
On any one day, the WFP estimates that it has 5,000 lorries, 20 ships and 70 aircraft on the move.
Outside emergencies, the WFP provides school meals to up to 25 million children in 63 countries, while working with communities to improve nutrition. Where possible, it buys supplies from developing countries to cut down transport cost and boost local economies.
