Today Minister Van Rijn was received by His Majesty the King. Afterwards the brand new PVDA Minister Van Rijn (Medical Care) gave his speech. He indicated that when he left the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport with Edith Schippers in the autumn of 2017, he never thought about returning again.

Speech by Minister Van Rijn (Medical Care) on 23 March 2020 after his inauguration by His Majesty the King.

Dear people,

When I left the Ministry of VWS together with Edith Schippers in the autumn of 2017, I never thought I would return there again.

I left VWS but especially left a lot of dear colleagues behind. Together we have worked hard on many subjects for years.

In recent weeks, we have quickly entered a crisis where much more work will have to be done. By many more people. The corona crisis is turning our lives upside down.

It is all hands on deck and that is also the reason for my Yes at the request of Prime Minister Rutte to act as temporary successor to Bruno Bruins. And to fight the Corona epidemic in the Netherlands together with Minister De Jonge. I thank the MP and the coalition parties for their confidence.

I imagine the choice for my person surprised you. And believe me: it was also a great surprise to me.

You know me as a member of the Labor Party that is now in opposition.

But there are times in life when such political differences don't matter. And I was raised to think you should be there when you are called upon in hard times.

I do not act on behalf of the PvdA, but I have decided in consultation with Lodewijk Asscher to do this temporarily, in view of the greater importance of fighting this crisis.

In a personal sense, this means that the PvdA group will continue to do what it does now from its responsibility as an opposition party.

As far as I am concerned, we pay as little attention as possible to this. There are many things that are much more important at the moment.

I would like to say a big thank you to Bruno Bruins. He has worked unprecedentedly as a crisis coordinator and has also done a very good job.

We all owe him many thanks.

I know the people in healthcare, at the ministry and at RIVM. I know how much this crisis is asking of them. And I know that they are willing to pull out all the stops. An incredible amount is still ahead of us.

I also want to ask them to pay close attention to themselves and each other. They are also simply mother or father, daughter or son. This is a sprint and a marathon. We have to be fast and keep it up for a long time. That means we have to do it together. We really need each other until the finish.

From today, Hugo de Jonge and I will continue the fight against the corona virus with united forces from VWS and with all colleagues from the cabinet.

And that is a battle on several fronts. That means doing everything possible to protect healthcare personnel by getting enough protective equipment in hospitals, such as mouth masks and medical equipment, such as respirators. So that doctors and nurses can do their work.

It also means ensuring that the intensive care capacity is maximally expanded and that patients are distributed as well as possible across hospitals.

It also means the commitment of all 17 million Dutch people to do what is necessary. We have seen this weekend that more and more people are willing to keep their distance. But unfortunately we also saw many people who are outside and do not keep a sufficient distance. That is really not possible anymore. Protect yourself. Protect your loved ones. Protect the vulnerable people. Protect people in healthcare.

Staying at home as much as possible, keeping social contacts to a minimum and keeping your distance are literally vital in this day and age. Help each other with that. Help yourself with that.

And help the people who care so hard for all of us to save lives. They are rightly applauded. But they still need that commitment from all of us for a while. 

The Netherlands can handle a lot. Healthcare can handle a lot. We can do a lot together.

I have now received many warm reactions to my appointment. The common element was: we are going to do this together. That can give confidence.

From today I will do everything in my power to ensure that people in healthcare can do their work optimally.

So that they can best help people who are sick with the coronavirus. Together we can do more. Together we can push boundaries. Fight this crisis. We are asked to do that. So we're going to do that.

I cannot emphasize enough that we all - 17 million people - can and must contribute to this. Keep your distance. Protect yourself, protect the people around you, protect the vulnerable in our country. And with that help our people in healthcare save lives.

Thank you

Also read: Historical TV speech by Mark Rutte about the corona crisis

Ministry of Care - The Hague
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