wiersma Accused of Deliberately Sabotaging Nitrogen Crisis solutions as Agriculture Minister
The Hague – A damning investigation by NRC Handelsblad alleges that Femke Wiersma, during her tenure as Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Rural Affairs under the BBB party, actively obstructed efforts to address the Netherlands’ nitrogen crisis for over a year. The report details a pattern of deliberately slowing down progress, suppressing crucial data, and disregarding expert advice, allegedly prioritizing the interests of intensive livestock farming.
According to the NRC reconstruction, wiersma scrapped the National Rural Area Plan despite objections from officials, removed key data regarding agricultural measures from official overviews, and dismissed warnings that the Netherlands’ legal position would be weakened without concrete action.The investigation claims this behavior protected intensive livestock farming at the expense of broader societal interests.
The report highlights widespread frustration within The Hague, citing instances of documents disappearing or being heavily rewritten, stalling decision-making. Officials reportedly observed Wiersma avoiding engagement in meetings and accumulating a backlog of over one hundred unsigned documents, primarily plans she opposed.
Wiersma repeatedly announced progress on increasing the “arithmetical lower limit” – a measure intended to reduce permit requirements – but these claims were reportedly unsubstantiated. Officials and the State Attorney repeatedly warned that a higher limit would be legally vulnerable without accompanying measures or financial commitments, advice Wiersma allegedly ignored.
The alleged consequences of WiersmaS actions include the cancellation of €18 billion in investments, delays in the construction of hundreds of thousands of homes, and the relocation of businesses abroad. Even LTO chairman Ger Koopmans, initially supportive of the BBB, publicly urged for “hard targets into law,” stating his members, the farmers, are “destroyed.” Despite this,BBB leader Caroline van der Plas has defended Wiersma’s performance,claiming that “delivering” sometimes means “holding things back.”
