Fleming becomes editor of top Dutch broadsheet
However, it wasn’t until Tuesday that his current employer Corelio Newspapers confirmed that he is to leave.
As well as ‘De Standaard’ and ‘Het Nieuwsblad’ Corelio also published the English-language magazine ‘The Bulletin’.
Peter Vandermeersch started work as a journalist at ‘De Standaard’ in 1988.
He became the paper’s editor in 1999 and set about giving the paper a new more modern look.
Since 2006 he has been Editor of both the quality daily ‘De Standaard’ and its sister paper ‘Het Nieuwsblad’, a paper renowned for the quality of its sports coverage.
Mr Vandermeersch will take over the reigns at ‘NRC Handelsblad’ from Birgit Donker who quit after differences with the paper’s new proprietors.
A Prestigious appointment
Peter Vandermeersch starts his new job on 1 September.
The CEO of Corelio Newspapers Luc Misotten told journalists that Mr Vandermeersch had been one of the driving forces at his company for many years.
Mr Misotten added that “This prestigious appointment reflects well on our company”. Peter Vandermeersch has been asked to keep his place on the board at Corelio.