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Fahid Minhas

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Fahid Minhas
Member of the House of Representatives
In office
31 March 2021 – 5 December 2023
Alderman in Schiedam
In office
17 May 2018[1] – 31 March 2021
Succeeded byAntoinette Laan
Member of the Schiedam municipal council
In office
27 March 2014[2] – 17 May 2018
Succeeded byBertus Feelders
Personal details
Born
Fahid Bashir Minhas[3]

(1988-02-14) 14 February 1988 (age 36)
Rotterdam, Netherlands
Political partyPeople's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD)
Children2
Alma mater
OccupationProject developer
Websitefahidminhas.nl

Fahid Bashir Minhas (born 14 February 1988) is a Dutch politician of the conservative liberal People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD). He worked as a real estate developer and became a member of the Schiedam municipal council in 2014. He then served as alderman in the same city between 2018 and 2021. Minhas was elected to the House of Representatives in the 2021 general election.

Early life and career

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Minhas was born in 1988 in the city of Rotterdam.[4] His parents had emigrated to the Netherlands from Pakistan, and he grew up with his two brothers and two sisters.[5][6] Minhas moved from Rotterdam-West to nearby Schiedam in his childhood and lived in its eastern neighborhood.[6] In the years 2000–2005, he attended the Rotterdam secondary school Wolfert van Borselen at havo level.[7]

Minhas studied architectural engineering at the Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences until 2009 and subsequently did a master's in Architecture, Building and Planning at the Eindhoven University of Technology, earning his degree in 2013.[4] He has told that he initially wanted to be an architect, but that he realized during his studies that he was bad at drawing and that he preferred arithmetic and economics. Minhas therefore decided to pursue a career in property development.[6]

He took a job at Provast, a real estate development firm, in 2012, working on its Rotterdam Markthal project. Minhas became a project developer for the company in 2014 and kept working there until his appointment as alderman in 2018.[4]

Schiedam politics (2014–2021)

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After having assisted the VVD's caucus in the Schiedam municipal council for some time, he became the party's third candidate in the 2014 municipal elections.[6][8] He had also helped write the VVD's election program.[8] He was elected and was sworn into the Schiedam municipal council on 27 March.[2] His focus was on housing, construction, and spatial planning.[9]

Minhas was re-elected in 2018 as the second person on the VVD's party list. His party won a plurality, and Minhas – aged thirty – left the council to become an alderman in the new municipal executive.[1][10] He simultaneously became Schiedam's deputy mayor, and he received the portfolio housing, construction, maritime development, business parks, and sports.[11] At the time, he owned five houses in Schiedam that he rented out. Due to his new position, Minhas decided to outsource the management of his properties.[12]

As an alderman, he encouraged the construction of new housing developments in his municipality.[13] He also promoted skyscrapers to be built in the new Schieveste neighborhood, located between the railway station Schiedam Centrum and the A20 motorway, which is planned to include one 120 m (390 ft) tall apartment building and several more with heights between 40 m (130 ft) and 90 m (300 ft).[14] The project with 3,000 houses received €18 million in funding from the national government.[15] Minhas was chosen Best Political Leader Under 40 of 2019 by the readers of magazine Binnenlands Bestuur because of his ambitious housing projects and his ability to listen.[16][17]

Minhas helped form a governing coalition in Schiedam following municipal elections on 16 March 2022. Fellow VVD member Nathalie Gouweleeuw had initially been selected for this purpose, but the municipal council had dismissed her advice. Minhas was subsequently picked as scout by DENK in late April and recommended a coalition consisting of the VVD, DENK, the Labour Party, D66, and Progressief Schiedam almost two weeks later. The council agreed with this conclusion.[18][19]

House of Representatives

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He ran for member of parliament (MP) in the 2021 general election, being placed 26th on the VVD's party list. His party won 34 seats, causing Minhas to be elected. He had received 699 preference votes and was sworn into the House of Representatives on 31 March.[20][3] He left his position as alderman, being succeeded by former MP Antoinette Laan, and also sold his three remaining rental properties in Schiedam.[21][22] In the House, Minhas's specialties are spatial planning, public transport, water management, the Kadaster, the Environment and Planning Act, the Crisis and Recovery Act, and the Spatial Planning Act.[23] He is a member of the Committees for Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality; for Infrastructure and Water Management (vice chair); for the Interior; and for Public Expenditure.[4]

Together with Jaco Geurts (CDA), he called on the state secretary to investigate a possible train connection between Eindhoven and Aachen.[24] He also co-filed successful amendments in late 2022 to spend €112.5 million of the infrastructure budget on projects in the northern Netherlands – one to tackle rail issues in Meppel and another to build a navigable aqueduct in Leeuwarden.[25] In 2023, a motion by Minhas and Faissal Boulakjar (D66) was passed compelling the cabinet to investigate prohibiting the splitting of agricultural land into smaller plots. Het Financieele Dagblad had reported that these lands were being bought to be divided into plots that could potentially be used for residential construction and sold to investors with a significant profit. However, the newspaper noted that construction of housing had been rare on those plots.[26] In August 2023, a judge determined that these investments should be within the purview of the Netherlands Authority for the Financial Markets.[27]

When the collapse of the fourth Rutte cabinet triggered a snap election in November 2023, Minhas decided to not seek a second term. He stated he could be of more use to society elsewhere, without yet mentioning what he would do afterwards.[28]

Electoral history

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Electoral history of Fahid Minhas
Year Body Party Pos. Votes Result Ref.
Party seats Individual
2021 House of Representatives People's Party for Freedom and Democracy 26 699 34 Won [29]

Personal life

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Minhas lives in Schiedam.[4] He has a wife and two children, the first of whom was born in 2020.[12][30][31]

References

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  1. ^ a b Don, Sandra (2 May 2018). "Toeristen laten betalen is optie" [Letting tourists pay is an option]. AD/Rotterdams Dagblad (in Dutch). p. 7.
  2. ^ a b "Notulen van de gemeenteraad van Schiedam" [Minutes of the Schiedam municipal council]. Gemeente Schiedam (in Dutch). Retrieved 7 July 2021.
  3. ^ a b "F.B. (Fahid) Minhas MA". Parlement.com (in Dutch). Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  4. ^ a b c d e "Fahid Minhas". Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal (in Dutch). 31 March 2021. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
  5. ^ Van Oudheusden, Ronald (14 March 2021). "Schiedamse wethouder Fahid Minhas: "Supergaaf om naar het hart van de democratie te gaan"" [Schiedam Alderman Fahid Minhas: "Awesome to go to the heart of democracy"]. Rijnmond (in Dutch). Archived from the original on 10 July 2021. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  6. ^ a b c d Koolen, Karin (19 June 2019). "De dromen van wethouder Fahid Minhas" [The dreams of Alderman Fahid Minhas]. Gers! (in Dutch). Retrieved 11 July 2021.
  7. ^ "Biografie, onderwijs en loopbaan van Fahid Minhas" [Biography, education, and career of Fahid Minhas]. Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal (in Dutch). Archived from the original on 28 June 2022. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  8. ^ a b "Ad Mostert lijsttrekker VVD" [Ad Mostert VVD's lead candidate]. AD/Rotterdams Dagblad (in Dutch). 26 November 2013. p. 5.
  9. ^ "Fahid Minjas [sic] doet sport" [Fahid Minhas responsible for sports]. Het Nieuwe Stadsblad (in Dutch). 30 May 2018. p. 8.
  10. ^ Don, Sandra (22 March 2018). "De bloemen zijn voor de VVD en Denk in Schiedam" [The flowers are for the VVD and DENK in Schiedam]. AD (in Dutch). Retrieved 7 July 2021.
  11. ^ "Fahid Minhas wil 'n mooier Schiedam" [Fahid Minhas wants a more beautiful Schiedam]. Het Nieuwe Stadsblad (in Dutch). 4 July 2018. p. 23.
  12. ^ a b Don, Sandra (23 January 2021). "Fahid Minhas blikt terug en kijkt vooruit: 'Wethouder zijn is het leukste dat ik tot nu toe deed'" [Fahid Minhas looks back and ahead: 'Serving as alderman is the most enjoyable thing I have done']. AD (in Dutch). Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  13. ^ Oosterom, Eric (4 April 2019). "Volop projecten in de Waterweggemeenten: Waar wordt allemaal gebouwd?" [Many projects in the Waterweg municipalities: Where is construction going on?]. AD (in Dutch). Retrieved 8 July 2021.
  14. ^ Don, Sandra (5 January 2020). "Nieuwe woonwijk en luxe hotel tussen station Schiedam Centrum en de A20" [New neighborhood and luxury hotel between Schiedam Centrum and the A20 motorway]. AD (in Dutch). Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  15. ^ Don, Sandra (10 September 2020). "Rijk kent Schiedam ruim 18 miljoen euro toe om woningbouw op Schieveste mogelijk te maken" [National government extends a grant worth over 18 million euros to Schiedam to make construction of housing at Schieveste possible]. AD (in Dutch). Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  16. ^ Don, Sandra (16 January 2020). "Rotterdamse burgemeester en Schiedamse wethouder vallen in de prijzen" [Rotterdam mayor and Schiedam alderman win award]. AD (in Dutch). Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  17. ^ Don, Sandra (6 January 2020). "Fahid Minhas (31) genomineerd voor titel jonge wethouder van het jaar" [Fahid Minhas (31) nominated for title Young Alderman of the Year]. AD (in Dutch). Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  18. ^ Reket, Stéphan (25 April 2022). "Schiedam krijgt met Fahid Minhas oude bekende als nieuwe verkenner" [Schiedam will get a known face as new scout with Fahid Minhas]. AD (in Dutch). Retrieved 10 June 2022.
  19. ^ Reket, Stéphan (9 May 2022). "Schiedam krijgt Metin Çelik als informateur" [Schiedam will receive Metin Çelik as informateur]. AD (in Dutch). Retrieved 10 June 2022.
  20. ^ "Uitslag Tweede Kamerverkiezing 17 maart 2021 Proces-verbaal" [Results general election 17 March 2021 Report] (PDF). Kiesraad (in Dutch). 29 March 2021. pp. 14 and 157. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  21. ^ Don, Sandra (16 March 2021). "Antoinette Laan neemt wethouderschap Fahid Minhas over, áls hij naar Den Haag vertrekt" [Antoinette Laan takes over office of alderman from Fahid Minhas, if he leaves for The Hague]. AD (in Dutch). Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  22. ^ Den Hartog, Tobias (25 May 2021). "Bijbanen en cadeaus: het blijft worsteling met transparantie voor Kamerleden" [Second jobs and presents: Members of parliament are still struggling with transparency]. AD (in Dutch). Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  23. ^ "Fahid Minhas". VVD (in Dutch). Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  24. ^ Adriaens, Jos (12 April 2022). "Staatssecretaris verwacht snel duidelijkheid over treinverbinding Eindhoven-Heerlen-Aken" [State secretary soon expects clarity about Eindhoven–Heerlen–Aachen train connection]. De Limburger (in Dutch). Retrieved 10 June 2022.
  25. ^ Baldwin, Jeroen (9 December 2022). "Lobby noordoost-Nederland beloond door Tweede Kamer: 113 miljoen voor spoorinfa" [Lobby of northeastern Netherlands rewarded by House of Representatives: 113 million for rail infrastructure]. SpoorPro (in Dutch). Retrieved 18 December 2022.
  26. ^ De Groot, Gaby; Van Rein, Erik (29 June 2023). "Tweede Kamer wil splitsing van landbouwgrond halt toeroepen" [House of Representatives wants to halt the splitting of agricultural lands]. Het Financieele Dagblad (in Dutch). Retrieved 6 July 2023.
  27. ^ Koops, Ruben (18 August 2023). "Rechter legt bom onder werkwijze dubieuze grondhandelaren: 'Einde verdienmodel'" [Judge destroys methods dubious land traders: 'End of business case']. RTL Nieuws (in Dutch). Retrieved 13 September 2023.
  28. ^ "Fahid Minhas: in november niet verkiesbaar in Tweede Kamer" [Fahid Minhas: Not seeking re-election to the House of Representatives in November]. Schiedam24 (in Dutch). 15 August 2023. Retrieved 24 September 2023.
  29. ^ "Proces-verbaal verkiezingsuitslag Tweede Kamer 2021" [Report of the election results House of Representatives 2021] (PDF). Dutch Electoral Council (in Dutch). 29 March 2021.
  30. ^ Minhas, Fahid (6 March 2021). "SCHIE TV: Wethouder Fahid Minhas is kandidaat Tweede Kamerlid voor de VVD" [SCHIE TV: Alderman Fahid Minhas is a VVD House of Representatives candidate] (Interview) (in Dutch). Interviewed by Marco Spruit Bleeker. SCHIE. Retrieved 10 July 2021 – via YouTube.
  31. ^ "07:10". Goedemorgen Nederland. Season 2023. Episode 133 (in Dutch). 22 March 2023. NPO 1. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
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