Joop Wijn

Joannes Gerardus (Joop) Wijn (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈjoːp ˈʋɛi̯n]; born 20 May 1969) was Minister of Economic Affairs in the third Balkenende cabinet of the Netherlands.

Wijn was born in Haarlem and has a master's degree in both economics and Dutch law from the University of Amsterdam. As a student he worked as an intern with Shell in Jakarta, Indonesia. He also worked as an economics teacher and started his own company, a search and selection agency. After his graduation in 1994, he was employed by ABN Amro as an investment manager, responsible for the financing of innovative companies in transition, e.g. start ups, expansion and management buy outs.

In 1998, he became a member of parliament for the Christian Democrats (CDA). As an MP he focused on public finances, small businesses and immigration politics. In 2000 he was also one of the few CDA MPs that voted in favour of a law making same-sex marriages legal in the Netherlands. The debate about same-sex marriage caused friction between his personal life and his political affiliation, as Wijn himself is gay.

In July 2002, Wijn became junior minister (staatssecretaris) for Economic Affairs in the first Balkenende cabinet, responsible for foreign trade. In the second Balkenende cabinet he was junior Minister of Finance, and among other things responsible for the functioning of the Internal Revenue Service. He transformed the IRS into an organisation that not only collects but also redistributes funds, e.g. for healthcare expenses, rent support and child benefits. His platform was the reduction of red tape and the promotion of tax benefits for families with children.

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