Nora Achahbar

Nora Achahbar (Dutch: [ˈnoːraː ˈɑɕaːbɑr];^[1][2] born 21 June 1983) is a Dutch jurist, judge and politician of the New Social Contract (NSC) party. She served as State Secretary for Benefits and Customs in the Schoof cabinet between July and November 2024.

Achahbar was born in Sidi Slimane, Morocco. Her father moved to the Netherlands as a guest worker aged 18, working as a cook in The Hague. Achahbar grew up in the Netherlands, and she described her childhood in poverty in an interview to Trouw. She graduated high school with a VWO diploma and went on to study law.^[3] She worked as a deputy judge, lawyer, and public prosecutor in The Hague. She prosecuted cases related to fraud, terrorism, violent crime, and burglary.^[4]

Achahbar joined the newly established political party New Social Contract, and she ran for the House of Representatives as its 26th candidate in the November 2023 general election. She did not enter the House, as the party secured 20 seats.^[4][5] After the PVV, VVD, NSC, and BBB formed the Schoof cabinet, Achahbar was sworn in as State Secretary for Benefits and Customs on 2 July 2024.^[4][6] Her portfolio includes the aftermath of the Dutch childcare benefits scandal and reforms to the benefits system.^[7] The cabinet aimed to finish the recovery operation for the scandal's victims by 2027 despite a slow pace of procedures. Achahbar criticized the myriad of compensation schemes. She established an emergency committee to advise on a new centralized recovery approach that would look beyond just financial compensation.^[3][8][9]

On 11 November 2024, when the Council of Ministers discussed the Amsterdam attacks, in which supporters of the Israeli football club Maccabi Tel Aviv F.C. were targeted, Achahbar considered some remarks racist and believed that some cabinet members violated the coalition's commitment to respecting each other during disagreements, drawn up during the cabinet formation, according to the NOS.^[10] After the council meeting, Prime Minister Dick Schoof blamed a specific group of young people with a migration background for the attacks, and he said that the events pointed to a broader integration issue.^[11] Achahbar announced on 15 November to the Council that she would resign as state secretary.^[12] Her intended resignation triggered crisis talks to prevent a cabinet collapse between Prime Minister Dick Schoof and the leaders of the four coalition parties, who finally agreed that other cabinet members of NSC would stay on.^[10] In a letter, Achahbar cited "polarizing interactions during the past weeks" as the cause of her resignation, which was granted the same day.^[12][13]