Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof has announced that his coalition government will serve as a caretaker administration after far-right politician Geert Wilders pulled his ministers out of the cabinet over a row over immigration restrictions.
The statement marked the end of a day of political change in The Hague following Mr Wilders' decision to leave the ruling coalition.
Mr Schoof said he would propose to the Dutch king that ministers from Mr Wilders' Party for Freedom resign. He and the other ministers would remain in place as caretaker officials, he told reporters.
The decision means the Netherlands will have a caretaker government ahead of a NATO summit in three weeks.
No date has been set for new elections, but they are unlikely to take place before autumn.
Mr Schoof, a civil servant whom Mr Wilders appointed to lead the government a year ago, has repeatedly stressed to coalition leaders in recent days that resigning the government would be “unreasonable and irresponsible”.
“We face serious challenges both nationally and internationally, and now more than ever, decisiveness is needed to ensure our resilience and economy in a rapidly changing world,” said Mr. Schoof.
Mr Wilders announced his decision on Tuesday morning via a message on X after a brief meeting in parliament with the leaders of the four parties that make up the fractured administration.
Mr Wilders told the press that he was ending his support for the coalition and withdrawing his ministers from the cabinet because the coalition had failed to meet his demands for stricter immigration rules.
“I signed up for the strictest asylum policy, not for the degradation of the Netherlands,” said Mr Wilders, whose Party for Freedom still leads Dutch polls, although the gap with the centre-left opposition is narrow.
Coalition partners rejected his arguments, arguing that they all support anti-migration measures.
The leader of the right-wing People's Party for Freedom and Democracy, Dilan Yesilgoz, noted before the meeting that Mr. Schoof had called for responsible action.
“The prime minister who addressed us this morning said that we are facing huge international challenges, there is a war going on in our continent and an economic crisis may be on the horizon,” Mr Yesilgoz told reporters in parliament.
However, just a few minutes later the meeting ended, as did Mr Wilders' participation in government activities.
“I'm shocked,” Mr Ye said.
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
