Henri Bontenbal

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Henri Bontenbal
Henri Bontenbal.png
Member of the House of Representatives
Assumed office
29 September 2021
Preceded by
In office
1 June 2021 – 14 September 2021
Preceded byPieter Omtzigt
Succeeded byPieter Omtzigt
Personal details
Born
H. Bontenbal

(1982-11-10) 10 November 1982 (age 39)
Rotterdam, Netherlands
Political partyChristian Democratic Appeal (CDA)
Children2
Alma materLeiden University
OccupationEnergy consultant

Henri Bontenbal (born 10 November 1982) is a Dutch energy consultant and politician, who serves as a member of the House of Representatives. He is a member of the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA).

Before he became a member of parliament, Bontenbal worked in the energy sector and advised the CDA on energy issues. He participated in the 2021 general election and was not elected. In June 2021, he was appointed to the House as the temporary replacement of Pieter Omtzigt. His term ended in September, but he became the replacement of later that month.

Early life and education[]

Bontenbal was born in Rotterdam and was raised with the Reformed faith in its southern borough of IJsselmonde (initially in the Lombardijen neighborhood). His father worked as a municipal cartographer, and Bontenbal has seven siblings.[1][2][3] He studied physics at Leiden University and became interested in climate change mitigation in the last phase of his studies.[2][4]

Career[]

Bontenbal started his career at sustainability consultancy DWA.[5] In 2011 – after four years at DWA – he took a job as a policy officer for the CDA's caucus in the House of Representatives, focusing on sustainability, energy, and the environment. Bontenbal became an independent consultant specialized in renewable energy generation in 2013 and served at the same time as a junior fellow of the CDA's scientific bureau.[5][6] In July 2015, he started working as senior strategy consultant at gas and electricity network operator Stedin.[7] Bontenbal was placed 94th on the 2018 edition of the Duurzame 100 (Sustainable 100), a yearly list published by newspaper Trouw with the one hundred most influential Dutch people in sustainability. He had before criticized the list, calling it elitist and lacking of people who contribute behind the scenes.[8]

While working for Stedin, he frequently wrote op-eds and commented on energy policy in the media. He also recorded a 36-episode podcast series with energy researcher Remco de Boer in the years 2018–20 about the subject called Bontenbal & de Boer.[2][9] Bontenbal has supported an energy transition away from natural gas and has called it necessary to consider biomass and nuclear power for achieving climate goals.[10][11][12] He has also decried political parties that have solely blamed corporations for climate change.[13] In 2019, when the third Rutte cabinet was struggling with reactive nitrogen emissions, Bontenbal told Trouw that the CDA would not have a future if it would keep advertising itself as a party for the countryside. He explained that farmers, while important, are just one group of people, and that the CDA should have a story that resonates with the whole of society.[14]

House of Representatives[]

Bontenbal was the CDA's seventeenth candidate in the 2021 general election. He received 1,345 preference votes, and he was not elected, because the CDA won fifteen seats in the House of Representatives.[15] Bontenbal was appointed to the House on 1 June 2021 as the temporary replacement of Pieter Omtzigt, who went on sick leave.[16] He simultaneously left Stedin.[17] His focus in the House was on climate, energy, and sustainable transport, and he was on the Committee for Finance.[2][18] Bontenbal and the CDA's scientific institute presented their climate vision in September. It called for a green industrial policy and for talks with major polluters to make binding agreements about reducing emissions. The document also advocated government investments in infrastructure for the hydrogen economy.[19] That same month, he said that it might be necessary for the government to buy Tata Steel's blast furnace in IJmuiden either partly or in its entirety in order to make it more sustainable.[20]

Omtzigt returned to the House of Representatives from his leave on 15 September, bringing an end to Bontenbal's term.[7] However, Bontenbal was again sworn into the House on 29 September.[21] , who was temporarily replacing during his sick leave, became a permanent member of the body following Mona Keijzer's resignation. This caused a vacancy for Van der Molen's seat until his planned return on 28 December, which was filled by Bontenbal.[22]

Personal life[]

Bontenbal has lived in the southern part of Rotterdam his entire life, and he has a wife, who works as a midwife.[18][23][24] They got married in 2006, and they have two sons.[2][25] Bontenbal can play the piano and the saxophone, and he is a fan of Russian composer and pianist Sergei Rachmaninoff.[2][26]

References[]

  1. ^ "Bontenbal hoog op lijst van CDA" [Bontenbal high on CDA party list]. AD/Rotterdams Dagblad (in Dutch). 28 October 2020. p. 2.
  2. ^ a b c d e f "Henri Bontenbal". CDA (in Dutch). Retrieved 17 July 2021.
  3. ^ Gruteke, Elsbeth (22 October 2021). "#7 - Henri Bontenbal; over zwaarmoedigheid, ouderschap, en de CDA klimaatkoers (S02)" [#7 - Henri Bontenbal; about melancholy, being a parent, and the CDA's climate vision (S02)]. NPO Radio 5 (Podcast). Levensbepalend (in Dutch). EO. Retrieved 28 November 2021.
  4. ^ Baazil, Diederik; Hagen, Sal; Tielbeke, Jaap (10 March 2021). "Geen tijd meer voor gemiste kansen" [No time left for missed opportunities]. De Groene Amsterdammer (in Dutch). Retrieved 17 July 2021.
  5. ^ a b "Henri Bontenbal benoemd tot fellow bij het WI" [Henri Bontenbal named fellow of the scientific bureau]. CDA (Press release) (in Dutch). 25 November 2013. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
  6. ^ Silvester, Mario (1 July 2014). "Pilots duurzame energie" [Renewable energy pilots]. Cobouw (in Dutch). Retrieved 14 July 2021.
  7. ^ a b "Drs. H. (Henri) Bontenbal". Parlement.com (in Dutch). Retrieved 22 September 2021.
  8. ^ Van Soest, Jan Paul (12 October 2018). "De groene parade van de Duurzame 100 maakt blind voor de realiteit" [The green parade of the Duurzame 100 obscures reality]. Trouw (in Dutch). Retrieved 14 July 2021.
  9. ^ "PERSONALIA Personeelswisselingen in de energiesector" [PERSONAL DETAILS Personnel changes in the energy sector]. Energeia (in Dutch). 30 October 2020. Retrieved 17 July 2021.
  10. ^ Van Eijsden, Auke (16 December 2017). "'Zo snel mogelijk stoppen met gebruik aardgas'" ['Stop using natural gas as fast as possible']. Nederlands Dagblad (in Dutch). Retrieved 14 July 2021.
  11. ^ Bontenbal, Henri (1 July 2020). ""Emotie regeert in biomassadebat"" ["Emotions control biomass debate"]. Reformatorisch Dagblad (Interview) (in Dutch). Interviewed by Michiel Kerpel. Retrieved 17 July 2021.
  12. ^ Balkenende, Frank (23 October 2021). "Oud-directeur kerncentrale Borssele adviseert over kernenergie - dat voedt twijfel over onafhankelijkheid" [Former president Borssele Nuclear Power Station gives advise about nuclear power, and that is causing doubts about independence]. PZC (in Dutch). Retrieved 17 July 2021.
  13. ^ "Henri Bontenbal, nummer 17 op kandidatenlijst CDA: 'Klimaatpolitiek moet ambitieus, eerlijk én wetenschappelijk onderbouwd zijn'" [Henri Bontenbal, the CDA's 17th candidate: 'Climate politics should be ambitious, fair, and based on science']. VNPI (in Dutch). 2 March 2021. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
  14. ^ Brandsma, Jelle (1 November 2019). "De boeren of besturen? Het CDA zit klem door het stikstofprobleem" [The farmers or governing? The CDA is stuck because of the nitrogen emissions problem]. Trouw (in Dutch). Retrieved 17 July 2021.
  15. ^ "Tweede Kamer 17 maart 2021" [House of Representatives 17 March 2021]. Databank Verkiezingsuitslagen (in Dutch). Kiesraad. Retrieved 17 July 2021.
  16. ^ Van der Aa, Edwin (12 June 2021). "Omtzigt kan Kamerzetel pas tweede helft september meenemen" [Omtzigt can take House seat no earlier than the second half of September]. AD (in Dutch). Retrieved 17 July 2021.
  17. ^ "PERSONALIA Personeelswisselingen in de energiesector" [PERSONAL DETAILS Personnel changes in the energy sector]. Energeia (in Dutch). 4 June 2021. Retrieved 17 July 2021.
  18. ^ a b "Henri Bontenbal". Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal. Retrieved 17 July 2021.
  19. ^ "CDA pleit voor ambitieus klimaatbeleid: "Vooral industrie moet duurzamer"" [CDA advocates ambitious climate policy: "The industry especially should be more sustainable"]. Reformatorisch Dagblad (in Dutch). 8 September 2021. Retrieved 22 September 2021.
  20. ^ Winterman, Peter (9 September 2021). "Ingrijpend plan: 'Nederlandse staat moet Tata Steel kopen om vervuiling aan te pakken'" [Far-reaching plan: 'The Dutch government should buy Tata Steel to tackle pollution']. AD (in Dutch). Retrieved 22 September 2021.
  21. ^ "Henri Bontenbal beëdigd als CDA-Kamerlid" [Henri Bontenbal sworn in as House member of the CDA]. Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal (Press release) (in Dutch). 29 September 2021. Retrieved 28 November 2021.
  22. ^ "Benoeming J.A.M.J. van den Berg-Jansen en H. Bontenbal tot lid van de Tweede Kamer" [Appointment of J.A.M.J. van den Berg-Jansen and H. Bontenbal as members of the House of Representatives]. Kiesraad (Press release) (in Dutch). 29 September 2021. Retrieved 28 November 2021.
  23. ^ Ewoud Kieviet (10 February 2021). "De weg naar Den Haag: Henri Bontenbal (CDA)" [The road to The Hague: Henri Bontenbal (CDA)]. SoundCloud (Podcast) (in Dutch). Coolsingelpraat. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
  24. ^ Remco de Boer (11 March 2021). "S29: Henri Bontenbal over politicus zijn, campagne voeren en de spannende race naar 17 maart" [S29: Henri Bontenbal about being a politician, campaigning, and the exciting race to 17 March]. SoundCloud (Podcast) (in Dutch). Studio Energie. Retrieved 17 July 2021.
  25. ^ Remco de Boer (30 June 2021). "Op de koffie bij ... Tweede Kamerlid Henri Bontenbal (CDA)" [Drinking coffee with... MP Henri Bontenbal (CDA)]. SoundCloud (Podcast) (in Dutch). Studio Energie. Retrieved 17 July 2021.
  26. ^ Verspreek, Paul (8 February 2019). "Rijnmond Staat Stil bij Henri Bontenbal en het klimaat" [Rijnmond Staat Stil about Henri Bontenbal and the climate]. Rijnmond (in Dutch). Retrieved 17 July 2021.
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