In recent years, the idea has often been floated: will we now get a Ministry of Digital Affairs? Multiple parties included this proposal in their programs. Among those parties is one of the frontrunners: D66.
Since 2021, the House of Representatives has had a permanent committee for Digital Affairs (DiZa), intended to sharpen and consolidate fragmented policy. This was a clear acknowledgment that digitization is a full-fledged, complex policy area, but a separate ministry has yet to materialize.
In Rutte IV, which lasted until 2024 (yes, that collapsed only a year and a half ago), there was indeed a minister with a digital portfolio: the state secretary for Kingdom Relations and Digitalization in D66's Alexandra van Huffelen - also from D66. For the first time, there was political ultimate responsibility for this dossier, but without the enforcement power and budget that come with a full-fledged ministry.
During the last governing period, the Dutch Digitalization Strategy (NDS) was updated in July 2025. This strategy sets ambitions around, among other things, data sovereignty, digital identity, interoperability, and cybersecurity, and serves as an umbrella for departmental implementation. Whether that implementation will be faster and more consistent with a ministry is precisely the crux of the current debate.
What do the winning parties want?
We already mentioned D66. Rob Jetten's party consistently positions itself as a proponent of stronger central management of digitization. In analyses and public appearances, this translates into a dedicated minister with their own budget and enforcement power - described by some as a 'light ministry', with the possibility of evolving into a full-fledged Ministry of Digital Affairs. In the current context, where D66 could become the largest party or must form a coalition, this makes the chance of institutional scaling more realistic than in 2024.
PVV has traditionally not included a plea for a separate digital ministry in its election programs. The party does mention separate digital themes but does not opt for a new departmental structure administratively. If PVV takes the lead - or acts as a key partner - the continuation of the current model (management via BZK, with a state secretary) is therefore likely.
What does this concretely mean for CIOs and IT managers?
Well, we still don't know the outcome. Therefore, it is wise to consider two scenarios, which you can already translate into projects and budgets today. In a D66-driven constellation, there is a greater chance of stricter frameworks for procurement, sovereign cloud, AI governance, and data sharing, with a clear point of contact, KPIs, and possibly a separate budget section. This could accelerate decision-making, eliminate redundancies, and reduce cross-departmental dependencies.
In a PVV-led variant, it is likely that the existing governance will be maintained and the focus will be on implementation within current structures, prioritizing cyber resilience and order/safety - useful for continuity, but risky if interdepartmental coordination stalls. In both cases, the NDS 2025 remains the substantive anchor against which you can measure roadmaps, architectural choices, and compliance requirements.
Why the pressure is higher now than last year
The virtually equal final score increases the chance that digitization will become a coalition issue rather than merely an implementation practice. PVV and D66 are neck and neck, but while D66 is on the rise, PVV is holding back; precisely this dynamic makes constructions conceivable in which central digital management comes to the table as a bargaining chip - or is precisely withheld.
Meanwhile, trade publications are warning of loss of knowledge in the House and experts are advocating for a consistent mandate to accelerate AI adoption and cyber resilience. The choice is therefore less ideological than practical: administrative effectiveness versus organizational calm.
The situation in Belgium
The Netherlands is lagging behind in Europe in terms of digital development. In Belgium, for example, digitization was upgraded to a full-fledged federal ministerial portfolio in February 2025. Vanessa Matz (Les Engagés) has since been the Minister of Modernization of the Government, overseeing Digitalization, AI, and Privacy, under Prime Minister Bart De Wever. It is not a standalone ministry, but digitization is at the ministerial level with its own policy responsibility and thus a clear place in the Belgian chamber.
The implementation relies heavily on FOD BOSA with the directorates DG Simplification & Digitalisation and DG Digital Transformation, which develop federal standards, platforms, and e-government services. A visible spearhead is MyGov.be, the digital identity wallet that was launched nationwide on May 14, 2024 - even before the digital 'ministry' - and serves as a central gateway to federal services.
Regionally, Flanders is accelerating through Digital Flanders, directly under political top management; in early 2025, a framework agreement was also signed allowing governments and schools to widely use itsme for identification and signing. Thus, Belgium combines ministerial management at the federal level with strong regional implementation power.
A Ministry of Digital Affairs
Whether there will be a Ministry of Digital Affairs depends on the coalition formation – and thus on who takes the initiative in a D66-PVV photo finish. For IT practice, it is now essential to align plans with the NDS 2025, assess supply chains and cloud choices against sovereignty and security requirements, and organize governance in such a way that you can quickly adapt to both outcomes. Will 2025 be the year of central digital management, or will the Netherlands continue to rely on the state secretary route? The answer will come at the coalition table; hopefully, we will have an answer before Christmas.
