Dutch Labour leader Wouter Bos announced his departure from politics on Friday and said Amsterdam mayor Job Cohen would unveil his candidacy for the party leadership later in the day, according to dpa. Bos, 46, said his decision to step down after the general elections on June 9, was linked to his responsibilities as "father of a family with three very young children. I want to spend more time with my family." Bos was instrumental in the collapse of the Dutch coalition three weeks ago when he ordered Labour deputies to leave the government in a dispute over the Dutch military presence in Afghanistan. It is the second time in two days that a leading male politician is quitting politics for family reasons. On Thursday, Transportation and Infrastructure Minister Camiel Earlings, a Christian Democrat, announced he was leaving politics "to start a family". Labour is to elect its new leader formally at the party convention on April 25, Cohen, 66, a former law professor and justice minister, has been mayor of Amsterdam since 2001.
