VBC News24 - News from the Van Hool Islands (Comments open)

[Van Hool Islands]

VBC News24 is the 24 hour news service of VBC, the Van Hool Islands' national English-language public broadcaster. The service also runs the online news aspect of VBC, and through the internet is available across the world. (OOC: Comments are open if you want to RP commenting, just make sure you quote the news story you want to comment on and use the code below. The [img] part is the profile image, feel free to replace the image with your own. Keep the profile picture around 130x130 please.).

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[Van Hool Islands]

Prime Minister Ariella Aitken comes out as bisexual, becomes first LGBT+ leader in the Van Hool Islands and Oceania
Written by Albertina Christinsen, VBC Vandenbrink

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Aitken campaigning in late 2016 in her home town of Hogeborg.

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Vandenbrink - The Prime Minister, Ariella Aitken, announced today that she is bisexual. This comes as a surprise to many Van Hool Islanders, as the country has never had an LGBT leader, and Aitken is only the fifth openly LGBT head of government in the world. This year has been quite a year for LGBT world leaders, as both Ireland and Serbia, two traditionally very religious nations, have had LGBT heads of government come into power. Aitken says that her sexuality shouldn't be the only thing defining her character, and said that she has been open about her sexuality with close friends and family for the better part of 15 years. She commented that she's happy to have her sexuality revealed to the public, and that she'll continue to fight for LGBT community members young and old, and also continue to fight for the cause of the Progressive party.

[Van Hool Islands]

Woolworths to open 10 new stores in the Van Hool Islands
Written by Aroha Mikaere, VBC Philipswijk

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Woolworths location in the Tasman Beach Westfield, Philipswijk

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Philipswijk - Australian retailer Woolworths, the largest grocery retailer in the Van Hool Islands, announced today that it will be opening ten new stores in the nation. Seven of these stores will be under Woolworths' Countdown brand, while the remaining three will be branded as Woolworths stores. These stores will be located in various cities across the country, most of them in Nordhoek and Sunshine Coast. The retailer's Van Hool operations have been quite successful over the past few years, and the company expects the Van Hool Islands to continue to be it's second most profitable market, behind Australia.

[Van Hool Islands]

Progressives become bilingual, unveil new logo
Written by Aafje Howse, VBC Vandenbrink

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The new, English language, logo of the Progressive party

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Vandenbrink - The currently governing Progressive party has unveiled a new look and has become the third bilingual party in the Van Hool Islands, after the Liberal and Socialist parties. The party has been under increasing pressure to become officially bilingual after Prime Minister Aitken's use of English as her primary language in Parliament, and the increasing importance of English in the Van Hool Islands. Aitken says this change was voted on last night by party members and passed with 85% approving of the changes. Aitken says this change will help her party become an even bigger force for the Progressive movement and will make the Progressive party appeal to more and more Van Hool Islanders.

[Van Hool Islands]

Prime Minister Ariella Aitken announces that she's expecting a second child
Written by Ernest Aylmer, VBC Vandenbrink

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Prime Minister Aitken at a Progressive party event in late 2016

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Vandenbrink - The Prime Minister, Ariella Aitken, announced today that she is expecting a new addition to her family. She announced that she is three months pregnant with her second child, and also announced that she will be going on maternity leave in about 4 months. This will be the first time a Prime Minister has had a child born in office, and it will also mark the first time a Prime Minister will have had to go on maternity leave. She announced that in the coming weeks she will appoint a trusted member of the Progressive party to replace her temporarily as Progressive leader and sit as the Acting Prime Minister, and that the Acting Prime Minister will be consulted and guided by her, so her views will be represented even in her absence. Aitken says that the news of her pregnancy is a "great joy" and a "wondrous blessing", and she also said that "Families are the backbone of this nation, no matter what the composition". Aitken's first child, Veerke, was also born in rather unusual political circumstances, as Aitken found out that she was pregnant about a week after she announced her bid to become Progressive leader, and was born only 5 months after Aitken became Progressive leader. Aitken joked about this sort of situation happening twice, saying that "Becoming a politician has done something to her".

[Van Hool Islands]

PM Aitken officially takes maternity leave of absence, appoints Minister of Security and Justice Odelia Ryskamp as Acting Prime Minister
Written by Albertina Christinsen, VBC Vandenbrink

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Acting Prime Minister Ryskamp campaigning in her riding of St. Nikolaas during the 2017 election

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Vandenbrink - The current Prime Minister, Ariella Aitken, has officially started maternity leave, and has appointed the current Minister of Security and Justice, Odelia Ryskamp, as Acting Prime Minister. This was announced in a joint press conference on the steps of the Houses of Government. Ryskamp, a noted member of the Progressive frontbench and prominent government minister, was chosen for her "Willingness to serve the people of the Van Hool Islands" according to Aitken. Aitken will advise Ryskamp when possible during her tenure as Acting Prime Minister, and says that "no major shift" will happen in government policies. Ryskamp will also serve as the acting leader of the Progressive party, as Aitken is also taking a leave of absence from that position as well.

[Van Hool Islands]

Anika Bunschoten resigns as Green Party leader, calls leadership election for 31 August
Written by Aafje Howse, VBC Vandenbrink

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Outgoing leader of the Green Party, Anika Bunschoten

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Vandenbrink - The current leader of the Green Party, Anika Bunschoten, announced today that she is stepping down after eleven years as the party's leader. Bunschoten also announced that a leadership election will be held on the 31st of August, and that she will stay until then as leader. Bunschoten plans on staying in politics as an MP, and said that she stepped down to "give someone else a chance".

[Van Hool Islands]

Petra Van Andel launches Green leadership campaign
Written by Suzanne Stephenson, VBC Vandenbrink

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Petra Van Andel

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Vandenbrink - The current Minister of Science and Green Party member, Petra Van Andel, announced today that she intends on running for the leadership of the Green Party, after the previous leader, Anika Bunschoten, announced that she was resigning her position. Van Andel has been one of the most integral members of the Green Party, serving as the party's president from 2009 to 2013. She currently is running unopposed as no other candidate has announced a leadership bid. Van Andel has already gained the support of previous Green leader Mark Van Oluf, who was the leader of the Green Party from 2001 to 2008, and again from 2011 to 2012. The Green Party is currently the third largest party in the governing Progressive coalition, behind the Progressive and Labour parties, but ahead of the Socialist and Unity parties.

[Van Hool Islands]

Three Conservative MPs form revived CDP
Written by Prisca De Ven, VBC Philipswijk

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Logo of the revived Christian Democratic Party

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Philipswijk - At a press conference in the CBD of Philipswijk this afternoon, three Conservative MPs announced they were forming a new splinter party, and that it would be a revival of the Christian Democratic Party that was last a party in the 1920s. They also announced that they had selected Shadow Minister of Immigration Esmée Vergoossen as their leader.

Esmée Vergoossen, the first leader of the revived CDP
The party stated that their mission is to be a "Dutch-speaking Liberal party" to represent centre politics for all Dutch-speaking Van Hool Islanders. The other two MPs that are members of the new party are Shadow Minister of Infrastructure Tjaard Hendrix, and Alfons Jansen, who was the Minister of Security and Justice under the Van Hout government.

[Van Hool Islands]

Petra Van Andel elected as new Green Party leader unopposed
Written by Aafje Howse, VBC Vandenbrink

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Petra Van Andel, just after being elected as the new Green Party leader

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Vandenbrink - At the Green party convention in Vandenbrink, members of the Green party, currently the third largest party in the coalition government, elected Petra Van Andel as their leader. She ran unopposed, as no other candidate announced a bid for the party's leadership. The current Minister of Science and MP since 2010, she promises to follow a path of governmental openness, equality, and environmentalism.

[Van Hool Islands]

Ariella Aitken announces birth of second child, announces return date from maternity leave
Written by Lance Maessen, VBC Vandenbrink

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Vandenbrink - The Prime Minister, Ariella Aitken, announced today that on the 10th of September she gave birth to her second child, a baby girl called Fawn Katherijn. She also announced that she will be returning from her parliamentary maternity leave on the 21st of September. She also thanked the Acting Prime Minister, Odelia Ryskamp, for her service and that she wishes her well in her final week as Acting Prime Minister.

[Secundus Imperium Romanum]

giuvanni0101 Roma, Secundus Imperium Romanum:
what's bisexual, any pop band fan? for if this leader is a fan of these teenagers stuck with rockers, that nation will fall into chaos!

[Van Hool Islands]

Pacific Islander groups celebrate new law making Maori an official language
Written by Stephen Williams, VBC Vandenbrink

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Vandenbrink - Yesterday in the House of Commons, members deliberated Bill 13-8, a law to make Maori the nation's third official language. This bill passed with a comfortable margin in favour, and Maori is now the nation's third official language. Pacific Islander groups say they're happy with the law, including notable Labour MP, Timoti Tane, one of the bill's strongest supporters.

[The Black Party]

Prime Minister Ariella Aitken comes out as bisexual, becomes first LGBT+ leader in the Van Hool Islands and Oceania

lmao wth

[Al-Khafadhi]

(Image)

Pacific Islander groups celebrate new law making Maori an official language
Written by Stephen Williams, VBC Vandenbrink

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Vandenbrink - Yesterday in the House of Commons, members deliberated Bill 13-8, a law to make Maori the nation's third official language. This bill passed with a comfortable margin in favour, and Maori is now the nation's third official language. Pacific Islander groups say they're happy with the law, including notable Labour MP, Timoti Tane, one of the bill's strongest supporters.

YAHH BOI AOTEAROA STYLE