Stef Blok

Stef Blok (2018)

Stephanus Abraham "Stef" Blok (born December 10, 1964 in Emmeloord , Flevoland province ) is a Dutch politician of the People's Party for Vrijheid en Democratie (VVD). He has been Foreign Minister in the Rutte III cabinet since March 2018 .

Life

Degree and bank manager

After primary school, Blok attended the municipal high school in Leiden between 1977 and 1983 and then began studying administrative science at the University of Groningen in 1983 , which he completed in 1988. During this time he was a student trainee at the Société Générale commercial bank in Paris between 1987 and 1988 .

After graduation he was 1988-1989 Management - Trainee at the Algemene Bank Nederland (ABN) and then between 1989 and 1991 Head of ABN store in Nieuwkoop , before following the merger of ABN AMRO Bank ABN AMRO in 1992 first senior manager for loans and then between 1992 and 1995 secretary for credit analysis at their training center (Concern Krediet College) . Most recently, from 1996 to 1998, he was an accounting manager and department head for corporate banking at ABN AMRO.

MP, parliamentary group leader and minister

During this time Blok, who joined the Volkspartij voor Vrijheid en Democratie (VVD) as a member in 1988, began his political career in local politics and was a member of the Nieuwekoop municipal council between April 12, 1994 and April 14, 1998. During this time he was also chairman of the VVD parliamentary group in the local council.

On August 25, 1998, he was elected as a candidate of the VVD as a member of the Second Chamber of the States General and belonged to it until May 23, 2002 and then, after a short break, again from September 3, 2002 to November 5, 2012. During this time he was the treasurer of the VVD parliamentary group from August 2002 to October 2010. In the parliamentary elections in 2010 he was the campaign leader of his party, which was the strongest parliamentary group with 20.49 percent of the vote. After the previous parliamentary group leader, Mark Rutte , became Prime Minister, Blok took over from him on October 8, 2010 as chairman of the VVD parliamentary group in the Second Chamber. He held this position until September 13, 2012 and was then deputy parliamentary group leader until November 1, 2012.

On November 5, 2012, Prime Minister Rutte Blok appointed Minister without Portfolio (Minister zonder Portefeuille) to his second cabinet , where he was responsible for housing and public administration (Minister voor Wonen en Rijksdienst) . After Ivo Opstelten resigned on March 9, 2015, he also temporarily held the office of Minister for Security and Justice (Minister van Veiligheid en Justitie) between March 10 and 20, 2015 , before Ard van der Steur took up this post was called. After the resignation of Minister Ard van der Steur (VVD) because of a judicial affair involving payments of millions to a drug dealer, Blok took over his office as Minister for Security and Justice on January 27, 2017. He remained a minister until October 26, 2017.

He has been Foreign Minister in the Rutte III cabinet since March 7, 2018, replacing Halbe Zijlstra .

Web links

• CV in Parlement & Politiek

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Dutch minister resigns due to legal affair. In: Deutsche Welle . January 28, 2017. Retrieved January 27, 2017 .