There is a lot to criticize about politics, but the current House of Representatives seems to be doing its best for the earthquake victims in Groningen. We’ll have to wait and see about that from NSC and BBB.
The House of Representatives last debated in this format on Monday about the handling of gas extraction and earthquake damage in Groningen. There were still strong disagreements. But it may also be said that a majority seems to have good intentions for Groningen. It remains to be seen whether this will still be the case after the elections.
What has gone wrong can never really be made right. The years of denial of damage caused by gas extraction remain unpalatable. Just like fooling Groningen and parliament about the need to extract extra gas and creating a bureaucratic hell for victims.
But the parliamentary inquiry conducted thorough research, the government provided an extensive response and it was seriously debated in parliament. State Secretary Hans Vijlbrief has worked on restoring confidence in Groningen.
The standing parliamentary committee on Groningen mining also forced him to do so. That committee includes the tenacious Groningen MPs Sandra Beckerman and Henk Nijboer. But the members of VVD, CDA, D66, ChristenUnie and PVV have also been giving the impression for some time that they are doing their best for those affected by gas extraction.
This is in contrast to Forum for Democracy and Wybren van Haga who keep trying to open the gas tap and brush away the disadvantages of this in Groningen. But these parties will probably only play a minor role after the elections.
Things are different for Pieter Omtzigt’s NSC and BBB by Caroline van der Plas. They will probably become an important power factor after the elections. It is not entirely clear how they feel about Groningen. Both have regularly spoken positively about the recovery measures for Groningen. But Van der Plas has shown himself to be erratic lately. And we have heard little about ‘Groningen’ from Omtzigt and his NSC. Hopefully they will provide more clarity in the coming campaign.