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Fleur Agema

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Fleur Agema
Agema in 2017
First Deputy Prime Minister of the Netherlands
Incumbent
Assumed office
2 July 2024
Prime MinisterDick Schoof
Preceded byRob Jetten
Minister of Health, Welfare and Sport
Incumbent
Assumed office
2 July 2024
Prime MinisterDick Schoof
Preceded byConny Helder
Member of the House of Representatives
In office
30 November 2006 – 2 July 2024
Succeeded byChris Faddegon
Member of the Provincial Council of North Holland
In office
20 March 2003 – 14 March 2007
Personal details
Born
Marie-Fleur Agema

(1976-09-16) 16 September 1976 (age 48)
Purmerend, Netherlands
Political partyPVV (2006–present)
Other political
affiliations		LPF (2002–2004)
Forza! (2004–2006)
Domestic partnerLéon de Jong (2014–present)
Children1
Alma materAKI ArtEZ University of the Arts (BA)
Amsterdam University of the Arts (MA)
Utrecht School of the Arts (MA)
Website(in Dutch) Party for Freedom website

Marie-Fleur Agema (born 16 September 1976) is a Dutch politician and former spatial designer, serving as First Deputy Prime Minister of the Netherlands and Minister of Health, Welfare and Sport in the Schoof cabinet since 2024. Agema previously served as a member of the House of Representatives for the Party for Freedom between 30 November 2006 and 2 July 2024.

Early life

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Agema was born in Purmerend, and her parents ran a business in the hospitality industry.[1] She has a BA degree from the AKI ArtEZ University of the Arts in 1999, an MA degree in Architecture from the Academy of Architecture of the Amsterdam University of the Arts in 2001, and an MA degree in Fine Art from the Utrecht School of the Arts in 2004.[2] From 1999 to 2003, she worked as a spatial designer and project leader for an architectural firm.

Provincial Council and House of Representatives

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In March 2003, she was elected to the States-Provincial of North Holland, as a member of the Pim Fortuyn List. On 17 October 2003, she said had lost confidence in the governing board of the Pim Fortuyn List with two other State members of the Pim Fortuyn List. In 2004, she left the party, because of dissatisfaction with the continuing internal dispute. She continued as a member of the States-Provincial as an Independent. In 2004, she was a founding member of the Forza! Nederland party alongside former Pim Fortuyn List politician Paul Meijer, however she left shortly after its founding to join the Party for Freedom. In this same year, she was also noted as being active on the neo-Nazi internet forum Stormfront which uses the slogan "White Pride World Wide."[3]

In 2006, she was asked by Geert Wilders, the party leader of the newly formed Party for Freedom, to join him on and get the second place on the list of candidates. In November 2006 she was chosen as a member of the Dutch House of Representatives. She left the States-Provincial on 14 March 2007. As an MP her main specialties are education, healthcare, spatial planning and infrastructure.[4] She advocated to raise the minimum age for sex workers from 18 to 21, leading to the change being enacted.[1] Agema received a sixth term in the 2023 general election, and her portfolio changed to disability care and elderly care.[5]

Minister of Health, Welfare and Sport

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After the PVV, VVD, NSC, and BBB formed the Schoof cabinet, Agema was sworn in as First Deputy Prime Minister and as Minister of Health, Welfare and Sport on 2 July 2024.[1][6] Responding to personnel shortages in the healthcare sector, she said that they could largely be resolved through new artificial intelligence technologies, and she indicated that she would introduce legislation to allow their usage.[7] The governing agreement of the Schoof cabinet clarified it aims to halve time spent on administrative tasks by healthcare workers. It also included a reduction of the minimum health insurance deductible from €385 to €165 starting in 2027.[8]

Agema advised against a motion to ban private equity firms from investing in the healthcare sector that received support from the PVV. She had been critical of the practice as a member of parliament, but she now said that legal hurdles existed and that such financing can be beneficial.[9] The House of Representatives urged Agema to prevent the closure of the emergency department and intensive care unit at Heerlen's Zuyderland Hospital [nl], but she was unsuccessful despite the coalition agreement's commitment to retaining local hospitals.[10]

Agema was tasked with extending the Integral Care Agreement, established in 2022 to maintain affordable and accessible healthcare for an ageing population. A revised agreement was planned for January 2024.[11] However, municipalities pulled out of the agreement in November 2024, citing insufficient funding.[12] When coalition parties agreed two weeks later to cut the healthcare budget by an additional €315 million, five more professional and trade associations pulled out. Agema expressed concern over the cuts, particularly those affecting additional and refresher training for medical specialist care.[11]

Personal life

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In December 2012, Agema announced that she has been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis.[13]

Agema went on maternity leave on 13 January 2015 and was replaced by Karen Gerbrands.[14] On 17 February 2015, she gave birth to a daughter with Léon de Jong.[15]

Electoral history

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Electoral history of Fleur Agema
Year Body Party Pos. Votes Result Ref.
Party seats Individual
2006 House of Representatives Party for Freedom 2 5,910 9 Won [16]
2010 House of Representatives Party for Freedom 2 31,486 24 Won [17]
2012 House of Representatives Party for Freedom 2 34,943 15 Won [18]
2017 House of Representatives Party for Freedom 2 71,229 20 Won [19]
2021 House of Representatives Party for Freedom 2 65,995 17 Won [20]
2023 House of Representatives Party for Freedom 2 117,255 37 Won [21]

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Agema in kabinet: beloning voor jarenlang hard werken en loyaliteit" [Agema in the cabinet: Reward for years of hard work and loyalty]. NOS (in Dutch). 13 June 2024. Retrieved 17 June 2024.
  2. ^ Members of Parliament: Fleur Agema - website of the House of Representatives of the Netherlands
  3. ^ nrc.nl
  4. ^ (in Dutch) Fleur Agema (PVV) ontpopt zich als klassiek Kamerlid Archived 2010-11-20 at the Wayback Machine, NRC Handelsblad, 12 June 2009
  5. ^ "Tweede Kamerfractie" [House of Representatives group]. Party for Freedom (in Dutch). Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  6. ^ "Ministers en staatssecretarissen kabinet-Schoof beëdigd" [Ministers and state secretaries of Schoof cabinet sworn in]. NOS (in Dutch). 2 July 2024. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  7. ^ Agema, Fleur (6 September 2024). "Agema geeft eerste interview als minister: 'Ik ben zo bang dat ik te gehecht raak aan deze rol'" [Agema gives first interview as minister: 'I am really afraid I will get too attached to this role']. Algemeen Dagblad (Interview) (in Dutch). Interviewed by Niels Klaassen and Elodie Verweij. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  8. ^ "Kabinet ambitieus over asiel en bouwen, maar stuit bij mest op grenzen" [Cabinet ambitious on asylum and construction, but is constrained on manure]. NOS (in Dutch). 13 September 2024. Retrieved 21 September 2024.
  9. ^ Von Piekartz, Hessel (10 September 2024). "Kamer vraagt opnieuw om verbod op private equity in de zorg, PVV tegenover eigen minister" [House asks again for ban on private equity in healthcare, PVV against own minister]. de Volkskrant (in Dutch). Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  10. ^ Kieskamp, Wilma (10 October 2024). "'Ultieme poging' Agema voor ziekenhuis Heerlen gestrand" ['Ultimate attempt' by Agema to keep open Heerlen hospital departments failed]. Trouw (in Dutch). Retrieved 16 October 2024.
  11. ^ a b Vermeer, Oscar (17 December 2024). "Voor zorgminister Agema stapelen de problemen zich op: 'De sector kan deze bezuinigingen niet dragen'" [Issues are piling up for healthcare minister Agema: 'The sector will not be able to handle these budget cuts']. NRC (in Dutch). Retrieved 17 December 2024.
  12. ^ Zurhake, Sander (29 November 2024). "Gemeenten boos over bezuinigingen zorg, stappen uit zorgakkoord" [Municipalities angered about cuts in healthcare budget, pull out of healthcare agreeement]. NOS (in Dutch). Retrieved 17 December 2024.
  13. ^ (in Dutch) PVV-Kamerlid Agema lijdt aan MS Archived 2014-11-29 at the Wayback Machine, NOS, 12 December 2012
  14. ^ "Karen Gerbrands vervangt PVV-Kamerlid Fleur Agema vanwege zwangerschap" (in Dutch). Parlement.com. 13 January 2015. Archived from the original on 20 February 2015. Retrieved 14 January 2015.
  15. ^ "Fleur Agema bevallen van dochter" (in Dutch). De Stentor. 18 February 2015. Archived from the original on 20 February 2015. Retrieved 28 January 2021.
  16. ^ "Proces-verbaal zitting Kiesraad uitslag Tweede Kamerverkiezing 2006" [Records meeting Duch Electoral Council results 2006 general election] (PDF). Dutch Electoral Council (in Dutch). 27 November 2006. pp. 131–132. Retrieved 22 December 2023.
  17. ^ "Uitslag Tweede Kamerverkiezing 2010" [Results 2010 general election] (PDF). Dutch Electoral Council (in Dutch). 16 June 2010. pp. 30–31. Retrieved 22 December 2023.
  18. ^ "Uitslag Tweede Kamerverkiezing 2012" [Results 2012 general election] (PDF). Dutch Electoral Council (in Dutch). 17 September 2012. pp. 60–61. Retrieved 22 December 2023.
  19. ^ "Uitslag Tweede Kamerverkiezing 2017 (getekend exemplaar)" [Results House of Representatives 2017 (signed example)] (PDF). Dutch Electoral Council (in Dutch). 21 March 2017. pp. 64–65. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
  20. ^ "Proces-verbaal verkiezingsuitslag Tweede Kamer 2021" [Report of the election results House of Representatives 2021] (PDF). Dutch Electoral Council (in Dutch). 29 March 2021. pp. 18–19. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
  21. ^ "Proces-verbaal van de uitslag van de verkiezing van de Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal 2023 d.d. 4 december 2023" [Report of the results of the election of the House of Representatives on 4 December 2023] (PDF). Dutch Electoral Council (in Dutch). 4 December 2023. pp. 33–34. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Fleur Agema.
Political offices
Preceded by Minister of Health, Welfare and Sport
2024–present 		Incumbent
Preceded by Deputy Prime Minister
2024–present
Served alongside: Sophie Hermans, Eddy van Hijum, and Mona Keijzer
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