Moonshot pact: If the Dutch can’t keep it together, how can we?

Over the last week I spent some time in the Netherlands. There is much to like in the Netherlands - tulips, cheese, and of course amazing engineering that keeps the sea at bay.

I also like the egalitarian nature of the Dutch. 

An example of that is their national health care system. With our newly passed NHI Act fresh in my mind, I asked around about their National Health system which is regarded as one of the best in the world. 

In order to access this free service every citizen has to take out basic insurance – which cost costs somewhere between 100-150 Euro (R2000-R3000). For more comprehensive services, like dental, they have to pay more. This fee is compulsory and the same for everyone irrespective of income. If someone is truly unable to pay, state subsidies are available. 

A quick aside: in 2020 the Dutch government spent over 10 billion Euro (just over R200 billion) on health care. This is roughly the same as the South African government did during that same period. However, there are only 17 million people in the Netherlands, compared to the 59+ million in South Africa with a much higher poverty rate. This just adds to my concerns about the proposed NHI here.)

The egalitarian outlook of the Dutch also extends to their politicians and members of the royal household. The queen mother, Queen Beatrix, was known for riding her bicycle around town. The same is true of their current Prime Minister, Mark Rutte, who is often seen cycling to work and even to the palace for audiences with King William-Alexander (who was also previously a commercial pilot on KLM). 

What a contrast to our ever-increasing blue light brigades and ill-behaved VIP protection unit! 

Prime Minister Rutte’s humbleness is perhaps best epitomised in an incident in 2018, when he accidentally spilled coffee on his way into parliament. He asked for a mop and water, and was caught on camera cleaning it up. Good PR? Perhaps. However, I just can’t see any of our politicians doing that. 

The egalitarian nature of the Dutch is not the only thing that interested me over the last few days. 

Their government fell over the weekend, when the 18-month-old coalition arrangement between four parties collapsed. This was due to a disagreement between the coalition partners about immigration policies. Rutte, who is one of the longest serving prime ministers in Europe (earning him the title of Teflon Mark), has now called it quits and said that he will retire after the snap elections later this year. 

Immigration is of course a very hot and difficult issue in the Netherlands, as it is across the EU at the moment. Yet, it interests me that even in a century old, stable democracy, the politicians could not keep a coalition going between four parties. 

Back in Cape Town on Monday, I was listening to Christopher Claasen of the newly formed Spectrum National Party on Cape Talk. He was waxing lyrically about the upcoming get together of the opposition parties in an attempt to form a coalition pact which would prevent the ANC from forming a government should they fall below 50% in the next election. 

I had to sigh. 

Such a scenario would almost certainly require every single opposition party to join the coalition government - many without any chance of reward such as cabinet positions. Let’s assume for the sake of the argument that they can pull that unlikely scenario off and can - against all the odds – agree on a President.  The question remains how stable such a government would be. Imagine, for example, the plethora of small parties which would have to be kept happy in order to keep them inside the coalition.  We have seen at local level that it is impossible and creates chaos and instability. 

Based on their performance over the last few years, the ANC is deservedly under enormous pressure as more and more people no longer trust them to lead the country. I agree that something must change. The question is what that change should look like and how we secure stability of the new order - which is essential for foreign investment and growth. 

Of course, there are several scenarios possible apart from an ANC-EFF coalition. For example, the DA should for the sake of the country not rule out the possibility of a coalition with the ANC. Neither should some of the smaller parties. 

There will undoubtedly still be much talk and discussions about coalitions over the next few months. In the meantime, I remain extremely doubtful about the success of the moonshot pact. Afterall if the Dutch can’t keep four parties together, what is the chance that our politicians can do it?