Dutch government collapses after immigration row

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The Dutch government has collapsed following a dispute over immigration curbs.

Prime Minister Mark Rutte announced on Friday night that his four-party coalition government would tender his resignation to King Willem-Alexander and an election would be held.

Rutte, 56, has been in power since 2010 with four coalition governments and is the EU’s second-longest-serving leader. But differences over asylum policy split his coalition of centre-right and liberal parties.

He said, “It is very regrettable.”

He said he still had the energy to continue as leader of his VVD party, but would take time to consider whether he should do so.

The two parties refused to support Rutte’s proposal to limit the number of asylum seekers after three days of talks. He was under pressure after the numbers went up last year.

Reception centers have been overwhelmed and in August a child died in a sports hall used as a shelter.

The VVD wanted to reduce the number of asylum seekers who could bring their families to the Netherlands. Only those who are in personal danger will be allowed to do so, for example because of their political views or sexual orientation. Those fleeing famine or war will not do this.

D66, a more progressive liberal party, and Christian Union, a centrist party, refused to agree.

Rutte has also tried to limit migration by lobbying Brussels for action. He recently traveled to Tunisia with Italian right-wing leader Giorgia Meloni and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to offer more than €1 billion in investment to stem the flow of migrants in the Mediterranean.

By law elections have to wait at least three months, and due to the summer and autumn holidays, elections are likely to be held in November.

Peter Heerma, leader of the Christian Democrats, said the collapse of the government was “very bad for the Netherlands”. He condemned Rutte as irresponsible and careless.

The VVD remains the largest party in the volatile political sphere of the Netherlands, with 20 parties including independent MPs in the lower house of parliament.

Sarah de Lange, professor of politics at the University of Amsterdam, said the elections would produce a “very different parliament”.

“The elections could be beneficial to the VVD, as coalition partners D66 and the Christian Democrats are very low in the polls and the new BBB party will struggle to get everything ready in time.”

The BBB, or Peasant Citizens Movement, is only four years old but it won the provincial election in March with 19 percent of the vote. It rose to prominence by supporting farmers’ protests against the government’s plans to reduce agricultural production to cut nitrate pollution.

BBB leader Caroline van der Plas, its sole MP, said she was open to elections.

“All the banners are still in the barn. They can be put back in the fields tomorrow. We just keep moving from one mission to the next. We continue what we were doing,” he told broadcaster NOS.