Rianne Letschert becomes Minister of Education

"Being a minister is a dog's job, not an honour position," Letschert said last August to the daily newspaper De Limburger. Even so, she seemed willing to take it on: "If everyone passes up the complicated jobs, we won't get anywhere."

On Thursday, RTL Nieuws reported that she would trade the presidency of Maastricht University for a ministry in The Hague. D66, the party she is affiliated with, confirmed the reports the next day. D66, which emerged as the big winner of last year's elections, asked her to be an informateur in December. The prospective Prime Minister, Rob Jetten, appreciated her role in this position and her good relationship with the leaders of the other coalition parties, CDA and VVD.

Before Maastricht, Letschert was a professor of International Law and Victimology in Tilburg. She became the rector of Maastricht University in 2016 and, in 2021, its president. Her political ambitions were no secret. Maastricht University's newspaper, Observant, speculated about this back in September.

In the Netherlands, the Ministry of Education is shared between two ministers. Her colleague will be State Secretary Judith Tielen (VVD), currently the State Secretary for Youth, Prevention and Sport. Previously, Tielen served as a Marketing lecturer at the Utrecht University of Applied Sciences. She was elected to the House of Representatives in 2017. 

The ministers still have to divide the portfolios among themselves, but Letschert will likely take charge of vocational education, higher education and scientific research.

Defence
VVD party leader Dilan Yeşilgöz will become the next Minister of Defence. She will also deal with universities and universities of applied sciences, as a significant portion of the increased defence budget will be allocated to knowledge and innovation.