Jort Kelder has to chuckle at Caroline van der Plas’s statement that she leads a ‘stable and established’ party. “She doesn’t really have an answer either, does she?” he says in Op1.
Caroline van der Plas says she is absolutely not disappointed that Pieter Omtzigt has started his own party. She tells on location, in front of the camera On 1: “A lot of people think I’m all sad now and stuff like: yes, that’s going to cost us seats, but that’s not the case at all. It is about how we proceed with the Netherlands.”
Pleasant woman
You simply ‘really need someone like Pieter Omtzigt for that’, says Caroline. Reporter Thomas van Groningen then asks: “But the question remains: if someone is in doubt between New Social Contract, the party of Pieter Omtzigt, and BBB, then why BBB?”
“Hahaha,” Caroline replies. “That is a good question. So why BBB? Yes, look, then I would say: we are hands-on-the-clay people, hands-on people, we have a stable established party – Pieter will undoubtedly come up with that too… Yes, you know , I find it difficult to say. I am a very pleasant woman, which is always nice.”
George chuckles
Op1 presenter Jort Kelder starts to chuckle with Caroline in the studio after the item. “It is interesting. She says: ‘A stable established party’, but (laughs inwardly, ed.) There is no list yet and she does not yet know who will be the prime minister. That’s actually what we’re doing right now. She doesn’t really have an answer, does she?”
Wim Voermans, professor of Constitutional and Administrative Law, then: “Well, no, she needs to think about that, of course. It happened to all of us today. I would think that she is more the directing party and that Pieter Omtzigt stands more for that administrative culture. Everyone now has to position themselves relative to that new party.”
No good news
Telegraaf journalist Wouter de Winther thinks this move van Omtzigt will cost the BBB many seats. “It’s not such good news for BBB if they want to become or stay a big party, it just depends on how you look at it. They now have one seat in the Chamber, but many more in the Senate.”
He continues: “People who thought that BBB will become the largest party… That chance has become a lot less. (…) At the same time: the friendliness may have another reason, because the BBB has sixteen seats in the senate and no matter how big Omtzigt becomes, he has no seat in the senate…”
“You can’t carry out all those big plans if you don’t also have senators. I wouldn’t be surprised if those two can still find each other in the coming months and years.”
Fragment
Tim Hofman about Caroline’s statements in Op1: