No major decisions made in formation talks yet; Finances making things complicated

PVV leader Geert Wilders said he was “reasonably positive about the progress of the Cabinet formation but acknowledged that it will be “a job” to provide a definitive answer by mid-May. “No major decisions have been made yet,” he said after meeting between the PVV, VVD, NSC, and BBB negotiators and the formation leaders. The fact that all the parties are still at the negotiating table “is already good news,” he thinks.

Finances make this period of formation negotiations more complicated than previous times, say the formation leaders. “Because money is no longer free,” said one of the two, Richard van Zwol. And the PVV, VVD, NSC, and BBB are discussing important issues that come with a price tag, such as social security, purchasing power, and housing construction.

According to Van Zwol, the previous two Cabinets were formed under much more favorable financial circumstances. They had sufficient money available in the state treasury to bridge political differences between the negotiating parties.

The formation leaders wouldn’t characterize the current talks as “rough,” as several media outlets reported from anonymous sources. There are more “financial dilemmas.” The parties all feel that responsibility, said van Zwol. But, there is no agreement yet on the financial framework within which the new Cabinet must remain.

No major decisions have yet been made in other areas, the formation leaders said. They emphasized again that they want to put together “the whole puzzle.” According to Van Zwol, they are “on schedule.” He and Elbert Dijkgraaf were given eight weeks by parliament. This is the third week. However, Van Zwol reiterated that the granted period is “rather on the short side than the long side.”

The formation leaders spoke to the negotiators one-on-one in recent days and then called them together for a joint discussion on Wednesday. They were coming together at the end of a series to ask, “Where are we?” Van Zwol said. “That seems only normal to me.”

NSC leader Pieter Omtzigt spoke of “very substantive conversations between parties that have the will to reach an agreement.” He was clear about his goal. “I really want there to be a Cabinet for the Netherlands; otherwise, I would not be at the table.”

Omtzigt called it normal that the parties sometimes have different opinions. “We already knew that on November 22. If they weren’t there, we would have a Cabinet by now.” They are four different parties, he said. “It’s not a marriage of love; it is a marriage of convenience at its best.”