A mixed week for boutique entrepreneurs as hairdressers and beauticians went back to work while cafe owners and sex workers protested against the lockdown. The first leaders’ debate featured a painful confrontation for Mark Rutte, a pointed exchange between Sigrid Kaag and Geert Wilders, and an own goal by Jesse Klaver. We explain why cut-out penguins popped up in Drenthe, how researchers read a 300-year-old letter without opening it and why Rutte raised hackles in Groningen again. And with less than two weeks to go, we give you a bluffer’s guide to the election so you can dazzle your friends with your knowledge of kiesdelers and informateurs.

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Ophef of the week: Statisticians choke on Nieuwsuur’s donut disaster

News

Hairdressers go back to work in first easing of coronavirus rules since December

Coronavirus cases increased by 7% in last week but vaccines are working

Leiden vaccine could be approved next week as Netherlands catches up

Hugo de Jonge says everybody could be vaccinated by July

Voters give party leaders food for thought in first TV election debate

Nuclear power is back on the agenda with a left-right split

All parties plan to raise taxes and spending, says statistics agency

Dental scan technology unlocks secrets of 300-year-old letters

Mysterious penguins pop up beside Hunebed Highway in Drenthe (Dagblad van het Noorden, Dutch)

Election special

The official guide to voting in Tweede Kamer elections