Alexandra van Huffelen

Minister for Digitalisation

Dutch Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations, Netherlands

Alexandra van Huffelen fulfilled various positions in the Dutch Ministry of Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment before working for energy company Essent and becoming Managing director of Amsterdam’s public transport company GVB. In 2020, she became the third Rutte government’s State Secretary for Benefits and Customs. Since January 2022, Van Huffelen is the Minister for Digitalisation in the fourth Rutte government. She is the first Dutch Minister with a ministerial post dealing with the digital transition – clearly emphasizing the Dutch ambition on the topic.

Born on 21 July 1968 in Leiden, married

Party: Democrats ’66 (D66)

Career

• 1992: Various positions in the Ministry of Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment
• 1997: Director, Projectbureau Energie 2050 (a sustainable energy project)
• 2000-2010: Various positions in the Netherlands and abroad with energy company Essent
• 2010: Member of Rotterdam municipal executive responsible for sustainability, city centre and outdoor spaces
• 2014: Managing director of Amsterdam’s public transport company GVB
• 29 January 2020 – 10 January 2022: State Secretary for Benefits and Customs in the third Rutte government
• 10 January 2022: Appointed Minister for Digitalisation in the fourth Rutte government

Party political positions and outside activities

• 2015-2019: Chair, national fundraising committee, D66
• 2019: Member of the Senate for D66, with responsibility for economic affairs and climate policy, care and taxation  
• 1995-2012: Supervisory board member and other supervisory positions including: Brabant Orchestra, the Van Neynsel nursing home group, the municipal utility company of the German city of Bremen
• 2014-2020: As director of Amsterdam’s public transport company GVB: member of the policy board of the International Association of Public Transport (UITP), the rail sector knowledge platform Railforum and the National Public Transport Consultation Committee
• 2017-2019: Chair, supervisory board, Health and Care Sector Guarantee Fund
• 2018-2019: Chair, supervisory board, Catharina Hospital, Eindhoven
• 2018-2019: Member of the transport and mobility roundtable for negotiations on the National Climate Agreement

Education

• 1986: Completed secondary education, De Vlietschans, Leiden
• 1992: Public administration, Leiden University and Erasmus University Rotterdam
• 1993: Public finances for senior civil servant