Laurens Dassen

Laurens Antonius Josephus Maria Dassen (born 19 October 1985) is a Dutch politician and former banker. Dassen grew up in Knegsel, studied business administration at Radboud University Nijmegen and worked for ABN AMRO for six years. He has been a member of Volt Netherlands since its foundation in 2018 and was elected to the House of Representatives as his party's lijsttrekker in the 2021 general election.

Laurens Dassen
Leader of Volt Netherlands
in the House of Representatives
Assumed office
31 March 2021
Member of the House of Representatives
Assumed office
31 March 2021
Personal details
Born
Laurens Antonius Josephus Maria Dassen

(1985-10-19) 19 October 1985
Eindhoven, Netherlands
NationalityDutch
Political partyVolt Netherlands
Residence(s)Amsterdam
Alma materRadboud University Nijmegen
OccupationBanker
Signature

    Early life and career

    Dassen was born in 1985 in Eindhoven and grew up in the nearby village Knegsel, North Brabant.[1][2] His father worked as a manager for Philips, and his mother was a primary school teacher.[3] Dassen has an older sister and a younger brother, and he attended the Veldhoven secondary school Sondervick College, earning his havo diploma in 2003.[3][4] In his youth, he played football at the Knegselse Boys, and he played the baritone horn in a youth orchestra.[2][3]

    After finishing secondary school, Dassen went to the Eindhoven Fontys University of Applied Sciences but quit after a year to study international economics at Maastricht University. Another year later, in 2005, he left that educational institution to study business administration at Radboud University in Nijmegen, where he graduated in 2011.[5][6] While a student, Dassen was a member of the student association N.S.V. Carolus Magnus, spent half a year in India and participated in the 2009 edition of Harvard Model United Nations as part of the United Netherlands delegation.[7][8]

    In 2012, following his graduation, Dassen took a job at ABN AMRO. He was initially involved in risk management and in the prevention of money laundering and terrorism financing, and he was posted to Dubai for five months. Dassen later worked on web and app development at the bank.[5][6][9] He left his job in September 2018 but returned part-time for a few months in 2020.[7][10]

    Politics

    Dassen's transition to political life was caused by a variety of factors, including increased nationalism and populism, Brexit and the election of Donald Trump as President of the United States.[9] Unable to find an established political party that fit him, he joined Volt Europa, who were seeking to form a Dutch wing, in February 2018 and became a volunteer.[3][5] Dassen was one of the people who founded Volt Netherlands on 23 June 2018 and started serving as its treasurer.[2][11] He quit his job at ABN AMRO in September to focus on politics full-time and also became Volt's secretary.[11][10] Dassen succeeded Reinier van Lanschot as party chair on 15 December 2018, when Van Lanschot was chosen as the party's lijsttrekker for the 2019 European Parliament election.[3][11] Dassen himself was listed third on the Volt Netherlands party list. The party received 1.93% of the vote, not enough to meet the threshold for a seat in the European Parliament.[12]

    House of Representatives

    In June 2020, Dassen was chosen as Volt's top candidate for the 2021 Dutch general election.[3] The Volt campaign focused on European, cross-border solutions for climate change, migration, security, and social inequality.[13][14] Dassen rejected attempts to place him on the left–right political spectrum, dismissing it as "old politics".[15] Volt won three seats in the election, resulting in Dassen being sworn in as member of the House of Representatives on 31 March.[16] He became the leader of Volt's caucus, and he is on the following committees:[1]

    • Committee for Defense
    • Committee for Digital Affairs
    • Committee for Economic Affairs and Climate Policy
    • Committee for European Affairs
    • Committee for Foreign Affairs
    • Committee for Infrastructure and Water Management
    • Committee for the Interior
    • Contact Group France
    • Contact Group Germany

    He stated that his party, being a newcomer, was not open to joining a new governing coalition.[17] In September 2021, Dassen and fellow members of parliament successfully called through a motion, which was adopted by the House, for a two-year period during which cabinet members could not fill a lobbying position following the end of their term. It was in reaction to recommendations by GRECO and to Minister Cora van Nieuwenhuizen stepping down to work as an energy lobbyist.[18] During Dassen's tenure as caucus leader, the party suspended House member Nilüfer Gündoğan from its caucus following allegations of unacceptable behavior. When she was definitively expelled in February 2022 after an investigation, Gündoğan filed a criminal complaint for defamation against Dassen, Volt, and the accusers.[19] A judge determined that the expulsion had been unjust, and Dassen subsequently apologized to Gündoğan but later stated that the conflict could only be resolved after the withdrawal of her criminal complaint.[20][21] Her expulsion was finally reinstated in March following a vote by the caucus, in which Dassen supported the move calling their relationship "permanently broken".[22][23] The conflict caused Dassen's approval rating among Volt voters to drop from 96% to 74%.[24]

    Personal life

    While a member of parliament, Dassen moved from Amsterdam to The Hague. He had been living in the former place since he had become a web and app developer at ABN AMRO.[1][2] He met his girlfriend Britte while studying.[10][25]

    References
    1. "Laurens Dassen". Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal. Retrieved 29 March 2022.
    2. Evertse, Judith (16 May 2019). "Kempisch geluid vóór Europa: 'Van Knegsel naar het Europarlement'" [Sound from Campine in support of Europe: 'From Knegsel to the European Parliament']. Eindhovens Dagblad (in Dutch). Retrieved 19 April 2021.
    3. Van Bekkum, Dylan (18 March 2021). "Volt-leider Laurens Dassen: verknocht aan het dorpse verenigingsleven, inspirator van een partij voor heel Europa" [Volt leader Laurens Dassen: devoted to social life in his village, inspirer of a party for all of Europe]. De Volkskrant (in Dutch). Retrieved 21 April 2021.
    4. "Geslaagd" [Graduated]. Eindhovens Dagblad (in Dutch). 19 June 2013.
    5. Kosterman, Ron (17 April 2021). "Het idee achter Volt is zo volstrekt logisch" [The idea behind Volt is extremely logical]. Elsevier Weekblad (in Dutch). Vol. 77, no. 16. p. 38.
    6. Te Bogt, Arjan (9 March 2021). "Volt wil de politiek opschudden: 'Denken in links en rechts is iets uit de vorige eeuw'" [Volt wants to shake up politics: 'Thinking in terms of left and right is something from last century']. Tubantia (in Dutch). Retrieved 21 April 2021.
    7. Bouma, Hilda (22 March 2021). "Bankier Dassen was blut, en zit nu in de Tweede Kamer" [Banker Dassen used to be broke and is now a member of the House of Representatives]. Het Financieele Dagblad (in Dutch). Retrieved 21 April 2021.
    8. Van der Putten, Johan (31 December 2020). "Vroeger voetbalde Laurens Dassen in de Kempen, nu mikt hij op de Tweede Kamer in Den Haag" [Laurens Dassen used to play football in the Campine, now he aims for the House of Representatives in the Hague]. Eindhovens Dagblad (in Dutch). Retrieved 19 April 2021.
    9. "Volt-lijsttrekker Laurens Dassen: 'Een premier moet af en toe ook keuzes durven maken die zijn eigen leven op de kop kunnen zetten!'" [Volt lijsttrekker Laurens Dassen: 'A prime minister has to make some decisions that can turn his own life upside down']. Commissie-Douwes/PowNed (in Dutch). NPO Radio 1. 24 February 2021. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
    10. Julen, Jeannine; Markus, Niels (30 March 2021). "Wie zijn Laurens Dassen en Caroline van der Plas, nieuwe stemmen in de Tweede Kamer?" [Who are Laurens Dassen and Caroline van der Plas, new voices in the House of Representatives?]. Trouw (in Dutch). Retrieved 21 April 2021.
    11. "Secretarieel Jaarverslag" [Secretarial Annual Report] (PDF) (in Dutch). Volt Netherlands. pp. 2 and 3. Retrieved 20 April 2021 – via ANBI.nl.
    12. "Uitslag Europees Parlementsverkiezing 2019" [Results 2019 European Parliament election] (PDF) (in Dutch). Kiesraad. 4 June 2019. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
    13. Al Ali, Wafa (28 February 2021). "Europese Volt rekent op een zetel in Den Haag" [European party Volt counts on a seat in The Hague]. NRC (in Dutch). Retrieved 4 March 2021.
    14. "Volt doet met Europees programma mee aan Nederlandse verkiezingen: 'Heel andere kijk van politiek'" [Volt participates in Dutch elections with a European platform: 'Completely different way of looking at politics']. WNL (in Dutch). 15 February 2021. Retrieved 18 March 2021.
    15. Wiegman, Marcel (5 March 2021). "Voltlijsttrekker Laurens Dassen: 'Ik kom met een positief verhaal, ja'" [Volt lijsttrekker Laurens Dassen: 'I am indeed coming with a positive narrative']. Het Parool (in Dutch). Retrieved 7 March 2021.
    16. "Definitieve uitslag verkiezingen: VVD 34 zetels, D66 24 en vier nieuwe partijen" [Final election results: VVD 34 seats, D66 24 and four new parties]. RTL Nieuws (in Dutch). 26 March 2021.
    17. "Volt blijft erbij: wij willen niet in kabinet" [Volt persists: We do not want to join a cabinet]. Leeuwarder Courant (in Dutch). 4 June 2021. Retrieved 12 July 2021.
    18. Korteweg, Ariejan (15 September 2021). "Kamer wil lobbyverbod voor bewindspersonen, maar nu echt" [House wants lobbying ban for cabinet members, but now really]. de Volkskrant (in Dutch). Retrieved 2 October 2021.
    19. "Gündoğan doet aangifte tegen Volt wegens smaad en laster" [Gündoğan files criminal complaint against Volt for defamation]. RTL Nieuws. 26 February 2022. Retrieved 20 March 2022.
    20. "Volt draait uit fractie zetten en schorsen Gündogan terug en wil in gesprek" [Volt turns back expulsion of Gündoğan and wants dialogue]. NU.nl. 9 March 2022. Retrieved 20 March 2022.
    21. "Volt-bestuur: pas verzoening als Gündogan aangiftes intrekt" [Volt leadership: Only reconciliation if Gündoğan withdraws criminal complaints]. Nederlands Dagblad (in Dutch). ANP. 15 March 2022. Retrieved 20 March 2022.
    22. Valk, Guus; De Koning, Petra (22 March 2022). "Volt stuurt Gündogan weg, in de zaal ernaast zingt de SGP" [Volt sends away Gündoğan, the SGP is singing in the adjoining room]. NRC (in Dutch). Retrieved 17 April 2022.
    23. Julen, Jeannine (22 March 2022). "Volt zet Gündogan officieel uit de Kamerfractie – 'de relatie is duurzaam ontwricht'" [Volt suspends Gündoğan officially from House caucus - 'the relationship has been permanently broken']. Trouw. Retrieved 17 April 2022.
    24. Lubbe, Rozemarijn (29 March 2022). "Gündoğan volgens grootste groep Volt-kiezers terecht uit fractie gezet, affaire kost partij wel 3 zetels" [Gündoğan rightly expelled from the caucus according to majority of Volt voters, scandal does cause a three seat lost]. EenVandaag (in Dutch). Retrieved 17 April 2022.
    25. Van der Kloor, Robin (27 March 2022). "Voormalig bankier Laurens Dassen worstelt als Volt-leider met de kwestie-Gündogan: 'Hij valt op door niet op te vallen'" [Former banker Laurens Dassen wrestles with Gündoğan conflict as Volt leader: 'He is noticeable by being hardly noticeable']. De Limburger (in Dutch). Retrieved 17 April 2022.
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