Mark Harbers

Markus Gerardus Jozef "Mark" Harbers (born 19 April 1969) is a Dutch politician who has served as Minister of Infrastructure and Water Management in the Fourth Rutte cabinet since 10 January 2022. A member of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD), he previously served State Secretary for Justice and Security in the Third Rutte cabinet from 26 October 2017 until 21 May 2019.

His Excellency
Mark Harbers
Harbers in 2020
Minister of Infrastructure and Water Management
Assumed office
10 January 2022
Prime MinisterMark Rutte
Preceded byBarbara Visser
State Secretary for Justice and Security
In office
26 October 2017 – 21 May 2019
Prime MinisterMark Rutte
Preceded byKlaas Dijkhoff
Succeeded byAnkie Broekers-Knol
Member of the House of Representatives
In office
11 June 2019 – 10 January 2022
In office
1 December 2009 – 26 October 2017
Personal details
Born (1969-04-19) 19 April 1969
Ede, Netherlands
Political partyPeople's Party for Freedom and Democracy
ResidenceRotterdam
OccupationCommunication employee, politician

Early life and education

Harbers was born in Ede, Gelderland. He studied economics at Erasmus University Rotterdam but dropped out before graduation.

Political career

Career in local politics

A former communication employee, Harbers served as a member of the district council of Kralingen-Crooswijk from 1992 to 1998 and municipal councillor of Rotterdam from 2002 until 2007. He was an alderman from 2007 to 2009, in charge of Economic Affairs, the Port of Rotterdam and the Environment.

Career in national politics

During the 2006 general election, Harbers occupied the 26th place on the list of VVD candidates; the party obtained 22 seats. On 1 December 2009, he entered the House of Representatives following the resignation of Arend Jan Boekestijn. He was reelected in 2010, 2012 and 2017.

On 26 October 2017, Harbers resigned from the House of Representatives to become State Secretary at the Ministry of Justice and Security, dealing with Asylum and Migration Affairs under the supervision of Minister Ferdinand Grapperhaus.

Effective 21 May 2019, Harbers resigned from his position following the publication of a report minimising the crimes committed by asylum seekers in the Netherlands. He was replaced by Senate President Ankie Broekers-Knol and returned to the House of Representatives shortly thereafter.

Minister of Infrastructure and Water Management, 2022–present

Early in his tenure, Harbers closed the Netherlands' airspace to Russian aircraft in response to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.[1]

References
  1. Anthony Deutsch (27 February 2022), Netherlands to close airspace to Russia from Sunday evening Reuters.
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