Cabinet negotiator says loose structure will be more stable with more political support

The moderator leading Cabinet formation talks in the Netherlands believes the best way forward is for the four right-wing parties involved in talks to investigate the formation of a "program Cabinet" guided by frameworks, and not a strict set of details that could implode at the first disagreement. Kim Putters said this emerged as the most viable form, saying that a Cabinet based on "an outline agreement" is "the only possibility for fruitful political cooperation between the factions of PVV, VVD, NSC and BBB." He argued that such a Cabinet should have a balance between politicians and those not in political circles to keep the coalition grounded.

During a presentation and press conference about the progress made in recent weeks, Putters said that a Cabinet operating from a looser structure has the best chance at maintaining support from the Tweede Kamer, the lower house of Parliament. In his report, Putters wrote that NSC leader Pieter Omtzigt found "the possibility of involvement from other parties to be important." Additionally, several parties have refused to form a traditional majority Cabinet with the PVV, the far-right party led by Geert Wilders which won the most votes in the November election.

Every combination of a minority Cabinet between the four parties was also either "unrealistic" or rejected by one of the four party leaders, Putters continued. That situation arises when one or more parties does not join the Cabinet, but provides support from the benches of Parliament. That led Putters to investigate the possibility of what he called a "program Cabinet," which he defined as being based on a skeleton agreement, with broad frameworks about different policy areas that can be the basis of a "constructive position" from which support can be found among other political parties.

This should also include a financial framework, and "concrete goals with regard to certain topics," he said. Though he did not specify what topics those are at this point, he specifically noted that the four parties emphasized asylum, immigration, nature and environment, agriculture, fisheries and food security. There was also importance placed on social security, purchasing power, healthcare, public housing, good governance, safety and security, State finances, the rule of law, and the international business climate.

A "concise outline agreement" would be an important "building block" to create this Cabinet, he continued. That said, "cooperation with each other and with the outside world partly determines its success." As such, he recommended that the party leaders involved reduce their use of social media and traditional media during the formation process if they are serious about preserving the "mutual trust" and positive atmosphere. An agreement about etiquette could be critical to the survival of a Cabinet with these four parties, including how legal proposals and amendments are handled, but also responses to "unexpected events and the outside world."

It was already clear that the four parties would likely only be able to move ahead unless Wilders gave up on the idea of becoming prime minister. Earlier on Thursday, Wilders called it “unfair” and “unconstitutional” that he will not become prime minister even though his PVV became the biggest party in the parliamentary election. “But you need the support from all parties for that.” According to Widlers, only BBB leader Caroline van der Plas fully supported him as Prime Minister. Another party said it wouldn’t be a deal-breaker, but the third party was completely against it in an extra-parliamentary Cabinet, Wilders said, a likely reference to Pieter Omtzigt.

When the four parties grew more open to alternative ways to collaborate to lead the Netherlands, Putters looked at several forms of an extra-parliamentary executive body. "An extra-parliamentary Cabinet is often based on a generalized set of goals, and not an extensive coalition agreement with concrete plans. Such a formation is more removed from the politicians in Parliament, putting less pressure on MPs when voting on Cabinet initiatives," he said.

He then honed in on an extra-parliamentary Cabinet with fewer career politicians, MPs, and senators leaving their roles to take a Cabinet position. "All variants are parliamentary in the sense that they cannot function constitutionally without the confidence of the Tweede Kamer."

Additionally, Putters said there was not enough support for a five-party majority coalition between the PVV, VVD, BBB, CDA and SGP. The idea of a six-party coalition between the PVV, VVD, BBB, FvD, SGP and JA21 also was not supported by the parties involved. Aside from the PVV, several parties also indicated they would not work with FvD.