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Directors of ACM departments announced

The Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM), which will officially be created on January 1, 2013, will have seven directors and one chief economist. All of these individuals come from one of the three regulatory authorities that will merge into the ACM: the Netherlands Consumer Authority, the Netherlands Competition Authority (NMa), and the Netherlands Independent Post and Telecommunications Authority (OPTA). Their names were announced today.

The directors are:

  • Ms. Bernadette van Buchem will be director of the Consumer Department
    Ms. Van Buchem (51), lawyer, started working at the Ministry of Economic Affairs as director in 2001. She has been director of the Netherlands Consumer Authority for two years now, and she is also a member of the steering group that oversees preparations for the ACM. 
  • Mr. Gerard Bakker will be director of the Competition Department
    Mr. Bakker (52), laywer, worked for several regulatory authorities, such as the Dutch Tax and Customs Administration, and he has been the director of the NMa’s Competition Department for 5 years now.
  • Mr. Remko Bos will be director of the Energy Department
    Mr. Bos (46), economist, has worked at OPTA since 1999. In 2005, he became the director of Consumers, Numbers, and Corporate Affairs. 
  • Mr. Johan Keetelaar will be director of the Telecommunications, Transport and Postal Services Department 
    Mr. Keetelaar (44), econometrician, has worked at OPTA for 11 years, the last seven of which in managerial positions. He is currently the director of Markets at OPTA. 
  • Ms. Monique van Oers will be director of the Legal Affairs Department
    Ms. Van Oers (46), lawyer with a master’s degree in public administration, previously worked in the legal field for years. She started working for the NMa in 1999. In 2005, she was appointed director of the NMa’s Legal Department. 
  • Mr. Dirk Janssen will be director of the Corporate Affairs, Policy, and Communications Department
    Mr. Janssen (42), economist, has worked at the Netherlands Consumer Authority since its inception in 2007 as deputy director. He previously worked at the Ministry of Economic Affairs since 1998.
  • Mr. Rob van Eijl will be director of the Corporate Services Department
    Mr. Van Eijl (54) has previously worked as officer, and has more than 30 years of professional experience in government. He started working at OPTA in 1997, and he is currently manager of OPTA’s Corporate Services Department. 
  • Mr. Jarig van Sinderen, will be the chief economist of the ACM’s Office of the Chief Economist
    Mr. Van Sinderen (58), Ph.D. in economics, has worked in government since 1982 in various positions. He has been the NMa’s Chief Economist for the last six years.

The ACM will have a Board, chaired by Mr. Chris Fonteijn, the Chairman designate. Mr. Fonteijn is currently the Chairman of the Board of the NMa, as well as the Chairman of the Commission of OPTA. In addition, the Board of the ACM will have two more members, the recruitment process for which is currently underway.

On January 1, 2013, the Netherlands Competition Authority (NMa), the Netherlands Consumer Authority and the Netherlands Independent Post and Telecommunications Authority of the Netherlands (OPTA), creating a new authority: The Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM). This new authority aims to ensure that markets work in order to protect consumer interests. To this end, the ACM will focus on three main themes: consumer protection, industry-specific regulation, and competition oversight.