HISTORY: :: File
The Netherlands will have its most right-wing government in decades.
On Wednesday, a Dutch nationalist Geert Wilders said the four parties had reached an agreement…
:: November 22, 2023
…almost six months after the great election victory.
Wilders has already resigned as prime minister to bring the parties to the table.
“We have an agreement among the negotiators,” he said.
Talks have dragged on for months since Wilders’ November victory.
The major sticking points included immigration, finance and climate.
:: May 2005
Wilders has been influencing Dutch immigration policy since 2006 and is known for his open views on Islam.
Although in recent months he has softened his anti-EU and anti-Islamic rhetoric and abandoned his opposition to Ukraine’s military support.
The coalition also includes the center-right party of outgoing Prime Minister Mark Rutte, the new centrist party and the farmers’ protest party.
They will have a clear majority: 88 seats in the 150-seat lower house.
According to the Dutch media, the potential candidate for the head of the new government…
:: File
…that’s Ronald Plasterk.
He is a Labor Party veteran who led some of the coalition negotiations.
One analyst says blocking the prime minister could prove problematic and adding a coalition could be inherently unstable.
:: November 22, 2023
Wilders, driven by a wave of anti-immigration and anti-establishment sentiment, achieved his biggest electoral victory after Rutte announced his departure from Dutch politics last year.
He blamed the lack of housing on the influx of asylum seekers.
Concerns about the cost of living and the health care system were also tapped into.
It is widely expected that the new government will introduce a more stringent asylum and migration policy.
Wilders has close ties to other European populists such as Hungary’s Viktor Orban.
He promised generous spending on health care and lowering the retirement age.
However, budget constraints make it unlikely that all other parties will support these plans.
