Dutch govt to beef up lockdown amid fears about new variants

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The Dutch government said Tuesday it needs to beef up lockdown measures “as soon as possible” to rein in the spread of the coronavirus amid fears about more transmissible variants. Health Minister Hugo de Jonge said in a letter to parliament that the government...

Dutch government wipes out debt for parents in fraud scandal

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The Dutch government on Monday said it is wiping out debts owed to the tax office and other government departments by parents caught up in a fraud scandal that caused the Cabinet to resign last week. State Secretary for Finance Alexandra van Huffelen said the decision means...

Dutch police use water cannon on anti-government protesters

OTTERLO, Netherlands (AP) — Police in Amsterdam turned a water cannon on hundreds of demonstrators who were taking part in a banned protest Sunday against the Dutch government and its tough coronavirus lockdown. Police on horseback also moved in to break up the demonstration on a large square ringed by...

The buck stops here: Dutch govt quits over welfare scandal

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte and his entire Cabinet resigned Friday to take political responsibility for a scandal involving investigations into child welfare payments that wrongly labeled thousands of parents as fraudsters. In a nationally televised speech, Rutte said he...

Dutch media report Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s government is resigning over scandal involving child welfare fraud probes

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Dutch media report Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s government is resigning over scandal involving child welfare fraud probes.

Dutch Labor Party leader steps down over welfare scandal

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The leader of the Dutch opposition Labor Party said Thursday he will not lead the party into the Netherlands' March election and will not run for reelection following a scandal involving child benefit fraud investigations. Lodewijk Asscher was minister for social affairs and a...

The Latest: Coronavirus cases surging in northeast China

BEIJING — China is seeing a new surge in coronavirus cases in its frozen northeast, and has reported its first death attributed to COVID-19 in months. Officials said Thursday that Heilongjiang province in the region traditionally known as Manchuria recorded 43 new virus cases, most of them centered on the...

Dutch hold mass coronavirus testing amid new variant fears

BERGSCHENHOEK, Netherlands (AP) — Residents of a Dutch town filed into a sports hall Wednesday to take part in the country's first mass coronavirus testing program, which aims to find out more about the spread of a new more transmissible coronavirus variant. The makeshift testing center in Bergschenhoek,...

No choice: Dutch PM extends coronavirus lockdown by 3 weeks

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte extended his country's tough five-week lockdown by a further three weeks Tuesday amid concerns that infection rates are not falling quickly enough and fears about the new more transmissible variant first detected in the United Kingdom. "Almost...

The Latest: New Zealand visitors must show negative test

WELLINGTON, New Zealand — New Zealand will soon require that travelers from most countries show negative coronavirus tests before they leave for New Zealand. COVID-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins says New Zealand is in a fortunate position to have stamped out community spread of the virus, but takes...