Jetta Klijnsma

Jetta Klijnsma
Klijnsma in 2015
King's Commissioner of Drenthe
Assumed office
1 December 2017
Monarch Willem-Alexander
Preceded by Jozias van Aartsen
State Secretary for Social Affairs and Employment
In office
5 November 2012  26 October 2017
Prime Minister Mark Rutte
Preceded by Paul de Krom
Succeeded by Tamara van Ark
In office
18 December 2008  23 February 2010
Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende
Preceded by Ahmed Aboutaleb
Succeeded by Paul de Krom
Member of the House of Representatives
In office
17 June 2010  5 November 2012
Mayor of The Hague
In office
1 January 2008  26 March 2008
Acting
Preceded by Wim Deetman
Succeeded by Jozias van Aartsen
Personal details
Born Jellejetta Klijnsma
(1957-03-18) 18 March 1957
Hoogeveen, Netherlands
Nationality Dutch
Political party Labour Party
Residence The Hague, Netherlands
Alma mater University of Groningen (MA in social and economic history)
Occupation Politician

Jellejetta "Jetta" Klijnsma (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈjɛtaː ˈklɛinsmaː]; born 18 March 1957) is a Dutch politician of the Labour Party serving as the King's Commissioner of Drenthe since 1 December 2017. Elected to the House of Representatives from 2010 to 2012, she focused on matters of culture, senior citizens, disabled people and medical ethics. Previously she was State Secretary for Social Affairs and Employment in the Fourth Balkenende cabinet (2008–2010) and an alderwoman of the municipality of The Hague (1998–2008). From 2012 to 2017 she was appointed again as State Secretary for Social Affairs and Employment, dealing with unemployment insurances, pay equality, long-term unemployment, poverty, and health and safety at work in the Second Rutte cabinet.[1]

Early life

Klijnsma was born 18 March 1957 in Hoogeveen.[1] She studied history at the University of Groningen, with a specialization in social history and economic history. After graduating she began to work for the Labour Party's parliamentary group. She was assistant to MPs André van der Louw, Marcel van Dam and Thijs Wöltgens.

Klijnsma has a physical handicap. She was born with spastic legs and only learned how to walk at age thirteen. She has a Reformed background but turned non-religious and became a member of the Dutch Humanist League.[2]

Political career

In 1990 she was elected to the municipal council of The Hague. In 1998 she became alderwoman for welfare, health and emancipation.[3] After the 2006 municipal elections she became responsible for culture and finance and also became vice-mayor. After Wim Deetman stepped down, she was mayor ad interim of The Hague and so became the first woman in that function.

In December 2008 she succeeded fellow Labour Party politician Ahmed Aboutaleb as State Secretary for Social Affairs and Employment in the Fourth Balkenende cabinet.[4][5] She was State Secretary until February 2010, when the Labour Party withdrew its support for Balkenende's government. An MP from 2010 to 2012, she was appointed again as Social Affairs State Secretary in the Second Rutte cabinet in November 2012, serving until the inauguration on 26 October 2017 of the Third Rutte cabinet which the PvdA does not support. On 1 November 2017 she was appointed King's Commissioner of the province of Drenthe after former The Hague Mayor Jozias van Aartsen was appointed in March 2017 as interim Commissioner; she took office on 1 December.

References

  1. 1 2 "Jetta Klijnsma Jetta Klijnsma State Secretary for Social Affairs and Employment". government.nl. Government of the Netherlands. Retrieved 26 January 2017.
  2. (in Dutch) Humanist League website
  3. Alexandre Dessingué; Jay M. Winter (14 August 2015). Beyond Memory: Silence and the Aesthetics of Remembrance. Routledge. pp. 25–. ISBN 978-1-317-42134-4.
  4. Office for Official Publications Of The (2009). Official Directory of the European Union. Office for Official Publications of the European Communities.
  5. IBP, Inc. (11 September 2015). Netherlands Investment and Business Guide Volume 1 Strategic and Practical Information. Lulu.com. pp. 39–. ISBN 978-1-5145-3025-2.
Political offices
Preceded by
Wim Deetman
Mayor of The Hague (Acting)
2008
Succeeded by
Jozias van Aartsen
Preceded by
Ahmed Aboutaleb
State Secretary for Social Affairs and Employment
2008–2010
2012–2017
Succeeded by
Paul de Krom
Preceded by
Paul de Krom
Succeeded by
Tamara van Ark
Preceded by
Jozias van Aartsen (Acting)
King's Commissioner of Drenthe
2017–present
Succeeded by
Incumbent
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