Dutch PM, Finance Min. unsure of Cabinet’s survival

Prime Minister Mark Rutte said he hopes that the coalition parties will jointly find a solution to a number of difficult problems on which they do not yet agree, “but you never know for sure.” D66 leader and Deputy Prime Minister Sigrid Kaag also said she does not know whether the current governing coalition of VVD, D66, CDA and ChristenUnie will survive the many crises it is facing.

“I don’t know if we will get out from under it, but it is the commitment to do so,” she said on Goedemorgen Nederland on Monday morning.

Kaag essentially agreed with earlier statements by Rutte, who is also the VVD leader. He said during the program WNL op Zondag that a few “tense subjects” are coming up, such as the nitrogen emissions issue and the asylum crisis. “I think it is possible,” said the prime minister. “But you never know for sure.”

According to Rutte, the coalition parties have “always prepared to take responsibility under difficult circumstances” in recent years. After a lengthy and difficult Cabinet formation, the four parties concluded their second consecutive coalition agreement at the beginning of last year. Although it also contains agreements on nitrogen and migration, these subjects continue to cause mutual tensions.

CDA member Derk Boswijk, who represents his party on several issues including nitrogen policy, also said he fears that the coalition will not make it and that the Cabinet will fall. He himself has thought about quitting “several times.” He said he did not resign, because then farmers would not be helped when they face major problems due to nitrogen policy.

According to Kaag, it is important that the Cabinet should remain strong and resolute, adding, “we also have to regain our own resilience.” She said the Cabinet has to stick to the agreements made regarding asylum and nitrogen as part of the coalition deal. “But I’ve always said, ‘We will do it right, or we won’t do it at all.‘”

Rutte believes tensions could soon rise similar to the way in which his first Cabinet fell in 2012. PVV leader Geert Wilders, whose party propped up a VVD and CDA coalition, refused to cooperate in a package of cuts to put the government financial situation back in order. “I didn’t see that coming at all,” said Rutte.

It looks as if the coalition parties will face a major setback on Wednesday during the Provincial Council elections. The elections determine the composition of the provincial governments, and thus are also important for the Senate. The provincial governments’ membership vote to determine the composition of the Senate.

The coalition already has a minority there, which is expected to become even smaller. The CDA in particular is expected to suffer a substantial loss.

The big question now is which parties the Cabinet will need to work with to get legislation through the upper house of Parliament, which could include concessions to a left-wing PvdA-GroenLinks combination or to conservative parties such as BBB and JA21.