Merlien Welzijn
Merlien Welzijn | |
|---|---|
| Member of the House of Representatives | |
| Assumed office 6 December 2023 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 20 December 1973 Paramaribo, Suriname |
| Nationality | Dutch |
| Political party | New Social Contract |
Merlien Welzijn (born 20 December 1973) is a Suriname-born Dutch politician of the New Social Contract (NSC) who was elected to the House of Representatives in the 2023 general election.[1]
Biography
[edit]Welzijn is of Surinamese descent.[2] She has an older brother and two younger sisters. When Welzijn was around seven, her parents separated, and her father took care of the children. They were homeless for a year, staying at family and friends. Welzijn cited the experience as her reason to become politically active.[3] Before her election, she served as board member of a housing corporation.[4]
She ran for the House of Representatives in November 2023 as NSC's tenth candidate, and she was elected.[5] Her focus is on housing, poverty, and civic participation.[6] Welzijn advocated for addressing a student housing shortage by encouraging homeowners to rent out rooms. She suggested increasing the allowed lodgings per house from one to two and relaxing rent protection regulations to permit eviction when a house is sold.[3] During budget debates, she proposed to identify and bundle delayed housing projects such that they could be expedited, in a similar fashion to the Crisis and Recovery Act for infrastructure projects.[7] She encouraged housing minister Mona Keijzer to negotiate mainly with housing corporations instead of private investors to ensure the affordability of new homes.[4]
Electoral history
[edit] |
| Year | Body | Party | Pos. | Votes | Result | Ref. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party seats | Individual | |||||||
| 2023 | House of Representatives | New Social Contract | 10 | 3,496 | 20 | Won | [5] | |
References
[edit]- ^ "Drs. R.M. (Merlien) Welzijn". www.parlement.com (in Dutch). Retrieved 18 December 2023.
- ^ "Vier Tweede Kamerleden met Surinaamse roots". Dagblad Suriname (in Dutch). 4 December 2023. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
- ^ a b Verweij, Elodie (29 August 2024). "Van dakloos naar Kamerlid: 'Voel het als mijn roeping om te voorkomen dat mensen dakloos worden'" [From homeless to member of parliament: 'It is my calling to prevent people from becoming homeless']. Algemeen Dagblad (in Dutch). Retrieved 29 August 2024.
- ^ a b Wolzak, Martine (29 November 2024). "NSC: 'Minister mag niet morrelen aan betaalbaarheidseisen woningbouw'" [NSC: 'Minister should not interfere with affordability demands housing construction']. Het Financieele Dagblad (in Dutch). Retrieved 3 December 2024.
- ^ a b "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. 185–186. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
- ^ "Tweede Kamerfractie" [House of Representatives group]. New Social Contract (in Dutch). Retrieved 17 November 2024.
- ^ König, Eppo (22 October 2024). "NSC wil tijdelijke crisiswet om woningnood te verhelpen" [NSC wants temporary crisis legislation to resolve housing shortage]. NRC (in Dutch). Retrieved 23 October 2024.
See also
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