View source for Derk Jan Eppink

{{short description|Dutch politician}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2023}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name                = Derk Jan Eppink
| image               = Derk Jan Eppink 02.JPG
| caption             = Eppink in 2014
| office              = Vice-Chair of the [[European Conservatives and Reformists Party|European Conservatives and Reformists]]<br>{{small|Dutch Delegation}}
| term_start          = 11 December 2011
| term_end            = 12 June 2014
| birth_date          = {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1958|11|07}}
| birth_place         = [[Steenderen]], [[Netherlands]]
| death_date          = <!-- {{Death date and age|df=yes|YYYY|MM|DD|YYYY|MM|DD}} -->
| party               = [[Farmer–Citizen Movement]] (2023–present)
| death_place         = 
| other_names         = 
| known_for           = 
| occupation          = [[Journalist]]<br>[[Politician]]
| nationality         = Dutch
| otherparty          = [[People's Party for Freedom and Democracy]] (1999–2018)<br>[[Libertarian, Direct, Democratic]] (2009–2014)<br>[[Forum for Democracy]] (2018–2020)<br>[[JA21]] (2020–2023)
| office1             = Member of the [[House of Representatives (Netherlands)|House of Representatives]]
| termstart1          = 31 March 2021
| term_start2         = 1 July 2019
| term_end2           = 30 March 2021
| office2             = [[Member of the European Parliament]]
| constituency2       = [[Netherlands (European Parliament constituency)|Netherlands]]
| termend1            = 5 December 2023
}}

'''Derk Jan Eppink''' (born 7 November 1958) is a Dutch [[journalist]], politician in the Netherlands, and former cabinet secretary for [[European Commissioner]]s [[Frits Bolkestein|Bolkestein]] (1999&ndash;2004) and [[Siim Kallas|Kallas]] (2004&ndash;2007).  In 2009, he was elected to the [[European Parliament]] for [[List Dedecker]], and in 2019 for [[Forum for Democracy]]. In 2021, he became an MP in the Dutch [[House of Representatives (Netherlands)|House of Representatives]] for the [[JA21]] party, but in 2023 he switched to the [[Farmer–Citizen Movement|Farmer-Citizen Movement]].

He sits on the [[European Conservatives and Reformists Group Executive]].

Eppink was born in [[Steenderen]], [[Gelderland]]. He studied Dutch law at the [[Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam]] (1977&ndash;1981) and thereafter European law and International Politics at the University of Amsterdam. In 1984 he moved to Brussels to become [[Traineeship scheme of the European Commission|trainee at the European Commission]]. Thereafter he worked for 3 years as assistant to Members of the European Parliament.

In 1987, Derk Jan Eppink joined the Dutch newspaper ''[[NRC Handelsblad]]'' where he was assigned to the foreign desk. He covered [[South Africa]], worked as correspondent in [[Poland]] and became political editor reporting on Dutch politics in [[The Hague]]. In 1995, he moved to the Flemish newspaper ''[[De Standaard]]'' where he reported on Belgian politics. He wrote two books on his experiences in Belgian politics: ''Vreemde Buren'' (Odd neighbors), ''Avonturen van een Nederbelg'' (Adventures of a Nether-Belgian).

In October 1999, he started working as member of cabinet of Dutch European Commissioner Frits Bolkestein. He was Bolkestein's liaison with the European Parliament, speechwriter and also assigned to liberalization of postal markets. In 2004, in co-operation with Bolkestein, he published the book ''[[The Limits of Europe]]''. In October 2004 Eppink joined the cabinet of Siim Kallas, European Commissioner from [[Estonia]], responsible for administration, audit and anti-fraud. In March 2007 Eppink published his book ''Life of a European Mandarin'' describing his experiences in the European Commission.<ref>[http://www.nisnews.nl/public/200307_2.htm Former Top Official: Dutch Naive In EU<!-- Bot generated title -->] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070708205533/http://www.nisnews.nl/public/200307_2.htm |date=8 July 2007 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Eppink|first1=Derk-Jan|author-link=Derk Jan Eppink|translator=Ian Connerty|title=Life of a European Mandarin: Inside the Commission|publisher=Lannoo|edition=1st|location=Tielt, Belgium|year=2007|pages=[https://archive.org/details/lifeofeuropeanma00eppi/page/221 221–2]|isbn=978-90-209-7022-7|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/lifeofeuropeanma00eppi/page/221}}</ref> A lecture he gave about this subject and about the [[European Union]] in general, at the Roosevelt Academy on 14 November 2007.<ref>{{YouTube|zmuXD-9eKbU}}</ref> The book has been published in Dutch, French, English, Estonian, and Czech.{{citation needed|date=November 2021}}

In 2007 Eppink moved to [[New York City]] as his wife worked for the [[United Nations]].<ref name="Flanders Today">{{cite web|date = 4 February 2009|url = http://www.flanderstoday.eu/sites/default/files/magazine/FT_2009_06.pdf|title = Fifth Column|publisher = Flanders Today|author=Otte, Anja|access-date = 2009-04-15}}</ref> He reported on the [[2008 United States presidential election|2008 American presidential election]] for Flemish magazines [[Knack (magazine)|Knack]] and [[Trends (Belgian magazine)|Trends]]. He wrote a column on foreign affairs for Dutch weekly [[Elsevier (magazine)|Elsevier]] and is contributor to various Dutch and Flemish radio and television programs, like [[Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroep|VRT]], {{Interlanguage link|Aktua-TV|nl|3=TROS Aktua}}, [[Nederlandse Omroep Stichting|NOS]] ''Met het Oog op Morgen'', [[RTL Television|RTL]] ''Business Class''. He wrote in 2011-2012 a column for [[NRC Handelsblad]] and since 2013 he writes for [[De Volkskrant]].{{citation needed|date=November 2021}}

His speeches on video can be retrieved through the [[Roosevelt Academy]] in [[Middelburg, Zeeland|Middelburg]], the [[University of Maastricht]], the [[University of Mississippi]] and Mississippi National Public Radio.{{citation needed|date=November 2021}}

In January 2007, Eppink received the 2006 [[Prize of Liberty]] from the Flemish libertarian think tank [[Nova Civitas]].{{citation needed|date=November 2021}}

In 2009, Eppink returned to Belgium to run for the [[European Parliament]] for the List Dedecker party. He shares similar views to the party's leader [[Jean-Marie Dedecker]].<ref name="Flanders Today"/>

In an article in November 2013, Eppink made the point that fiscal consolidation in Ireland had worked well, and that the breakdown in Greece could not be blamed on so-called 'austerity'.<ref>{{Cite news |author= Derk Jan Eppink |date= 22 November 2013 |title= Ireland and Greece prove the naysayers wrong |url=http://euobserver.com/opinion/122188 |work= [[EUobserver]] |access-date= 25 November 2013 }}</ref>

Not re-elected in 2014, in July 2019 he was elected a member of the European Parliament for the Dutch right wing party [[Forum for Democracy]] (FvD).<ref>[http://www.europarl.europa.eu/meps/en/97133/DERK+JAN_EPPINK/home Derk Jan EPPINK]</ref> In 2020, Eppink, along with the FvD's two other MEPs,He subsequently joined the [[JA21]] party and in 2021 was elected to the Dutch House of Representatives for the party.<ref>[https://www.politico.eu/article/baudet-resumes-role-of-dutch-far-right-party-in-shambles/ Baudet faces task of rebuilding Dutch far-right party after reelection], [[Politico Europe|Politico]], 7 December 2020</ref>

Eppink signed the ''[[Madrid Charter]]'', a document drafted by the [[Far-right politics|far-right]] Spanish party [[Vox (political party)|Vox]] that describes left-wing groups as enemies of [[Ibero-America]] involved in a "criminal project" that are "under the umbrella of the Cuban regime".<ref name=":42">{{Cite web|title=Carta de Madrid|url=https://fundaciondisenso.org/carta-de-madrid/|access-date=2021-12-07|website=Fundación Disenso|language=es}}</ref>

== Electoral history ==
{{Incomplete list|date=December 2023}}
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable" border=2 cellpadding=4 cellspacing=0 style="border: 1px #aaa solid; font-size: 90%; text-align:center;"
|+ {{sronly|Electoral history of Derk Jan Eppink}}
! scope="col" rowspan=2 |Year
! scope="col" rowspan=2 |Body
! scope="col" colspan=2 rowspan=2 |Party
! scope="col" rowspan=2 |{{abbr|2=Position on the party list|Pos.}}
! scope="col" rowspan=2 |Votes
! scope="colgroup" colspan=2 |Result
! scope="col" rowspan=2 class="unsortable" |{{abbr|2=References|Ref}}.
|-
! scope="col" |Party seats
! scope="col" |Individual
|-
! scope="row" | [[2021 Dutch general election|2021]]
| [[House of Representatives (Netherlands)|House of Representatives]]
| style="background-color:{{party color|JA21}};"|
| [[JA21]]
| style=text-align:right | 3
| style=text-align:right | 2,966
| style=text-align:right | 3
| {{yes2|Won}}
| <ref>{{Cite web |url = https://www.kiesraad.nl/adviezen-en-publicaties/proces-verbalen/2021/03/26/uitslag-tweede-kamerverkiezing-17-maart-2021 |website = Dutch Electoral Council |language = nl |access-date = 21 December 2023 |format = PDF |date = 29 March 2021 |title = Proces-verbaal verkiezingsuitslag Tweede Kamer 2021 |trans-title = Report of the election results House of Representatives 2021 |pages = 151–152 }}</ref>
|-
! scope="row" | [[2023 Dutch general election|2023]]
| House of Representatives
| style="background-color:{{party color|Farmer–Citizen Movement}};"|
| [[Farmer–Citizen Movement]]
| style=text-align:right | [[List of Farmer-Citizen Movement candidates in the 2023 Dutch general election|25]]
| style=text-align:right | 552
| style=text-align:right | 7
| {{no2|Lost}}
| <ref>{{Cite web |url = https://www.kiesraad.nl/adviezen-en-publicaties/proces-verbalen/2023/12/04/proces-verbaal-van-de-uitslag-van-de-tweede-kamerverkiezing-2023 |website = Dutch Electoral Council |language = nl |access-date = 21 December 2023 |format = PDF |date = 4 December 2023 |title = Proces-verbaal van de uitslag van de verkiezing van de Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal 2023 d.d. 4 december 2023 |trans-title = Report of the results of the election of the House of Representatives on 4 December 2023 |pages = 125–182, 245 }}</ref>
|}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{commons category}}

{{Members of the House of Representatives of the Netherlands, 2021–2023}}
{{European Parliament MEPs, 2019-2024 (Netherlands) by party}} {{EP Political Group ECR}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eppink, Derk Jan}}
[[Category:1958 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Dutch civil servants]]
[[Category:Dutch libertarians]]
[[Category:Dutch newspaper editors]]
[[Category:Dutch officials of the European Union]]
[[Category:Dutch political journalists]]
[[Category:Dutch reporters and correspondents]]
[[Category:European civil servants]]
[[Category:Farmer–Citizen Movement politicians]]
[[Category:Forum for Democracy MEPs]]
[[Category:JA21 politicians]]
[[Category:Libertair, Direct, Democratisch MEPs]]
[[Category:Libertair, Direct, Democratisch politicians]]
[[Category:Magazine writers]]
[[Category:Dutch MPs 2021–2023]]
[[Category:MEPs for Belgium 2009–2014]]
[[Category:MEPs for the Netherlands 2019–2024]]
[[Category:People from Bronckhorst]]
[[Category:Farmer–Citizen Movement MPs]]