Ferry Biedermann
10 July 2024
The Netherlands’ lessons from the UK – and England
For once, Dutch politics is more interesting and offers a greater spectacle than Britain’s
Read the full article19 June 2024
The calm before the storm in Belgium and the Netherlands
Does Belgium’s political limbo and the Netherlands’ far-right surge demonstrate that governments are optional?
Read the full article05 June 2024
The right spells trouble for von der Leyen
The Netherlands serves as a warning of what happens when mainstream parties appease the far right rather than confronting them
Read the full article29 May 2024
Belgium is now a fractured country
As their election nears, Belgians political tensions are growing deeper
Read the full article16 May 2024
The triumph of the Wilders
The Dutch far-right politician will not be prime minister, but he is in power
Read the full article13 March 2024
Amsterdam’s new Holocaust museum
This is the country’s first museum dedicated to telling the whole story of the darkest period in European history. Will it get it right?
Read the full article14 February 2024
How Schrödinger inspired Wilders’ cabinet
In the Austrian physicist’s style, the mooted right wing coalition is simultaneously dead and alive
Read the full article23 December 2023
The Belgian far-right politician and a Chinese link
The Flemish nationalist Vlaams Belang party has been hit with claims about a senior member
Read the full article23 November 2023
Wilders’ win in Holland is a seismic shock
Geert Wilders and his party have taken hate into the mainstream
Read the full article18 November 2023
The Netherlands is sleepwalking towards the general election
A dreary campaign is entirely in keeping with the country’s political process
Read the full article12 July 2023
The end of the Mark Rutte era is a fresh start for Dutch politics
When Rutte chose migration as his hill to die on, his leadership was over
Read the full article26 June 2023
Belgium’s high society art murder
The fatal shooting of a Baroness, allegedly by her stepson, has captured the public imagination
Read the full article19 April 2023
Amsterdam’s red light for rowdy tourists
The city wants to change its image. But this rebranding will be no mean feat
Read the full article16 March 2023
Belgium breaks bad: How Antwerp became a hub of the global cocaine trade
The city's role in the drugs trade has brought narco-state violence to the peaceful heart of Europe
Read the full article08 December 2022
Belgium’s burning resentment
Moroccans were blamed for riots in Brussels after their World Cup upset of Belgium. But what really happened?
Read the full article13 October 2022
The battle for a northern soul
Gentrification has come to Amsterdam’s Noord borough. But not everyone is happy with the results
Read the full article07 July 2022
The art of controversy
Organisers wanted to shake up a German contemporary art show. They did that, all right
Read the full article24 March 2022
Bitter Orange: The Dutch face up to their past
PM Mark Rutte has apologised for atrocities in Indonesia, but some are still nostalgic for days of empire
Read the full article20 January 2022
The writing on the wall: Is it time for a new Amsterdam?
Politicians are determined to clean up the city’s fabled sex and drug trade. But some locals aren’t so sure.
Read the full article07 October 2021
The dark side of the Dutch
Sensational reports of a plot to kill the Netherlands PM have raised fears about the seemingly sedate, safe country’s descent to narco-state status. But they are also a reminder of the country’s violent political past.
Read the full article20 June 2021
How Syria’s decade of despair washed up on Europe’s shores
Since the start of the Syrian civil war 10 years ago, Europe has taken in more than one million refugees. So what has been the impact on the continent?
Read the full article22 May 2021