Senna Maatoug

Senna Maatoug (born 19 August 1989) is a Dutch civil servant and politician, who has been a member of the House of Representatives since the 2021 general election. She is a member of the green political party GroenLinks.

Senna Maatoug
Member of the House of Representatives
Assumed office
31 March 2021
Personal details
Born (1989-08-19) 19 August 1989
Leiden, Netherlands
Political partyGroenLinks
Alma materLeiden University, Utrecht University
Websitesennamaatoug.nl

Education and career

She studied political science at Leiden University and economics at Utrecht University until 2013, when she obtained a master's and research master's degree.[1][2][3] During her study, she also worked at the newspaper Leidsch Dagblad and reached the final of the 2013 World Universities Debating Championship in the category English as a Second Language.[1][4]

Before becoming a member of parliament, Maatoug worked at the Social and Economic Council, at the Ministry of Social Affairs and Employment, and as an economist at the Ministry of Finance.[1][5][6] Besides her job, she taught economics at Leiden University.[6] Maautoug also served on the board of the Druckerfonds, a foundation that financially supports social and cultural initiatives in and around Leiden, between 2018 and 2021, and she is co-founder and co-chair of Het Collectief, a local organization organizing policy discussions.[1][7][8][9]

National politics

She was placed fifth on the party list of GroenLinks in the 2021 general election.[5] During the campaign, Maatoug argued that the number of temporary employment contracts had gotten out of control.[3] She was elected to the House with 19,392 preference votes.[10] Maatoug's specializations are social affairs, employment, pensions, integration, and child care, and she is on the parliamentary Committees for Finance, for Public Expenditure, and for Social Affairs and Employment as well as on the United States contact group and the Parliamentary Inquiry into Fraud Policy and Public Service, initiated as a result of the Dutch childcare benefits scandal.[11][12][13]

Together with Labour Party member of parliament Henk Nijboer, she wrote an alternative budget proposal with more spending on health care, education, and welfare, with higher corporate and capital taxes, and with a lower budget deficit compared to the coalition's budget.[14] Furthermore, in reaction to widespread remote working during the COVID-19 pandemic to contain the virus, Maatoug and Steven van Weyenberg (D66) introduced a bill to prohibit companies from denying an employee's request to work from home or from the office without proper reasoning. The Wall Street Journal reported that it would make the Netherlands among the first countries with a right to work from home. The bill – called "Werken waar je wilt" (Working wherever you want) and an amendment to the Flexible Working Act of 2015 – was passed by the House in July 2022. Maatoug said that it would improve employee's work–life balance and that it would lead to lower commuting times.[15][16] However, the bill was rejected by the Senate in September 2023 in a 37–38 vote.[17] Maatoug also continued a 2020 bill by Wim-Jan Renkema (GroenLinks) – who had left the House – to require companies to have a confidant. It was passed by the House in May 2023 with opposition from the coalition party VVD despite cabinet approval. The CDA supported the bill only after filing an amendment to initially exclude business with fewer than 10 employees.[18][19] That same year, the House carried an amendment co-filed by Maatoug to shorten the term for personal debt restructuring from three to one and a half years. It received the support from a majority of the House.[20]

Personal life

Maatoug was born and raised in the South Holland city Leiden and still lives there.[1] Her grandparents moved to the Netherlands from Morocco.[21]

References
  1. De With, Theo (10 November 2020). "Leidse Senna Maatoug hoogste nieuwkomer op kandidatenlijst GroenLinks" [Senna Maatoug from Leiden is highest newcomer on party list GroenLinks]. Leidsch Dagblad (in Dutch). Retrieved 30 November 2020.
  2. Terpstra, IJsbrand; Maatoug, Senna (16 November 2020). "Maandag 16 november, 19.00 uur" [Monday 16 November, 19:00]. Politiek071 (in Dutch). Sleutelstad Radio. Retrieved 30 November 2020.
  3. Bormans, Abel; Scheifes, Ilja; De Vos, Evert (10 March 2021). "Wie zijn de nieuwe partijtijgers?" [Who are the new political tigers?]. De Groene Amsterdammer (in Dutch). Retrieved 12 March 2021.
  4. De Gelder, Willem (6 January 2013). "Leiden gooit hoge ogen op WK debatteren" [Leiden impresses during debating world championship]. Sleutelstad (in Dutch). Retrieved 30 November 2020.
  5. De Witt Wijnen, Philip. "GroenLinks kiest voor parlementaire ervaring en diversiteit" [GroenLinks chooses for parliamentary experience and diversity]. nrc.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved 30 November 2020.
  6. "Senna Maatoug". GroenLinks (in Dutch). Retrieved 30 November 2020.
  7. Van Bakel, Gerry (17 April 2019). "Praat mee in Old School over 'Meer of minder Europa'" [Join the conversation in Old School about 'More or less Europe']. Sleutelstad (in Dutch). Retrieved 30 November 2020.
  8. "Druckerfonds: Jaarverslag 2019" [Druckerfonds: Annual report 2019] (PDF). Stichting H.L. Druckerfonds (in Dutch). p. 4. Retrieved 30 November 2020.
  9. Van Wely, Roeland (23 August 2021). "Nieuwe bestuursleden en meer vermogen bij het Druckerfonds" [New board members and more money for Druckerfonds]. Sleutelstad (in Dutch). Retrieved 28 September 2021.
  10. "Uitslag Tweede Kamerverkiezing 17 maart 2021" [Results general election 17 March 2021] (PDF). Kiesraad (in Dutch). 26 March 2021. p. 265. Retrieved 27 March 2021.
  11. "Enquêtecommissie zoekt nog twee jaar naar de waarheid rond fraudebeleid" [Parliamentary inquiry will seek the truth about fraud policy for another two years]. FD (in Dutch). 3 February 2022. Retrieved 20 February 2022.
  12. "Senna Maatoug". Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal. 31 March 2021. Retrieved 29 March 2022.
  13. "Senna Maatoug". GroenLinks (in Dutch). Retrieved 11 May 2021.
  14. De Horde, Cor (9 February 2022). "Linkse tegenbegroting: meer koopkracht, meer lasten bedrijven" [Leftist alternative budget: Higher purchasing power, higher corporate tax burden]. FD (in Dutch). Retrieved 9 February 2022.
  15. "Werknemer krijgt meer recht op thuiswerken" [Employee receives more rights to work from home]. FD (in Dutch). 5 July 2022. Retrieved 4 September 2022.
  16. Papachristou, Lucy (7 July 2022). "Netherlands Poised to Make Work-From-Home a Legal Right". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 4 September 2022.
  17. Toe Laer, Elfanie (26 September 2023). "Thuiswerken wordt tóch geen recht" [Remote working will not become law after all]. FD (in Dutch). Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  18. Van der Leij, Lien (8 February 2023). "VVD in verzet tegen wetsvoorstel verplichte vertrouwenspersoon" [VVD in opposition to bill mandatory confidant]. FD (in Dutch). Retrieved 26 March 2023.
  19. "Tweede Kamer wil verplichte vertrouwenspersoon bedrijven" [House of Representatives wants to mandate confidant for companies]. Noordhollands Dagblad (in Dutch). ANP. 23 May 2023. Retrieved 2 June 2023.
  20. De Jonge, Adriaan (25 January 2023). "Tweede Kamer stemt voor kortere schuldentrajecten" [House of Representatives votes in favor of shorter debt restructuring]. Binnenlands Bestuur (in Dutch). Retrieved 8 February 2023.
  21. Mulducci, Annalaura (13 March 2021). "Senna Maatoug (Kamerkandidaat GroenLinks): 'Als een mens keuzes maakt, is dat politiek'" [Senna Maatoug (House candidate GroenLinks): 'When someone makes choices, that is politics']. Leidsch Dagblad (in Dutch).
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