New Dutch leader bans phones at cabinet meetings to reduce espionage risk

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The Netherlands’ new prime minister has banned the use of cellphones and other mobile devices during his weekly Cabinet meetings, a move aimed at reducing the risk of digital eavesdropping by spies.

“The threat of espionage is timeless. Electronic devices, the phone, the iPad, these are all little microphones, and countries are interested in making decisions in the Netherlands as well, and you want to prevent that. It’s a very simple measure – all phones in a safe,” Dick Schoof, former head of the country’s intelligence agency, told reporters on Friday.

The phones were not banned under Schoof’s predecessor, Mark Rutte, who left Dutch politics after the November general election won by the far-right Freedom Party. under the chairmanship of Geert Wilders.

Schoof, whose technocratic government took office in July, said he was taking a different approach given his previous work in the intelligence community.

“Maybe I have a little more experience with this type of thing,” he said. “So for me it was completely natural. And I found that all the members of the cabinet actually agreed immediately.”

Erik Akerboom, the current head of the General Intelligence and Security Service, which Schoof once headed, warned last year about espionage including China attacking the Netherlands and in particular its high-tech sector.

“We see every day that they are trying to steal it from the Netherlands,” Akerboom told The Associated Press.

Schoof’s government is holding a series of meetings to work out a detailed policy plan, which will be unveiled next month.