Political coalition in The Hague collapses after talks with opposition leader De Mos

The governing coalition in the municipality of The Hague collapsed on Thursday evening. The VVD is ending its cooperation with D66, CDA, PvdA and GroenLinks. That happened after a restless additional City Council meeting. It brought an end to the third ruling coalition in The Hague in five years.

The reason for the split is the way in which the coalition intended to deal with Hart voor Den Haag, the party of former Alderman Richard de Mos and the largest party in the City Council. He was fully acquitted of corruption charges in April and now wants to return to the coalition, though the Public Prosecution Service intends to pursue a conviction on appeal for bribery and breaching confidentiality rules.

Former Medical Care Minister Bruno Bruins was brought in as a mediator. Bruins, who served 12 years in politics in The Hague as a council member and an alderman, recently advised the coalition parties to consider working with De Mos as he represents the city's largest party. The VVD, CDA and D66 were willing to engage with the former alderman, but PvdA and GroenLinks were strongly against this. They made it clear they were still adamantly opposed to this during Thursday's debate. The two parties said they would be happy to discuss issues with De Mos, but that they are and remain against a formal cooperation.

"We cannot continue as if nothing has happened," said VVD faction leader Lotte van Basten Batenburg. "That is not good for the relations in the Council, it is not morally correct and democratically it is indelicate. Some coalition parties have opted for their own interests. We attach great importance to our role in the coalition, but our interests in the coalition are subordinate to our democratic principles. Sometimes there are situations where you cannot make a choice, but you can only do the right thing."

The two VVD aldermen, Anne Mulder and Kavita Parbhudaya, immediately submitted their resignations. "It is with great regret that we note the resignation of two colleagues. The Board will continue its work," said Mayor Jan van Zanen, who chairs the board comprised of the city's mayor and aldermen.

D66 proposed during the debate that the coalition should talk to the entire opposition "and in particular with Hart voor Den Haag." The party made that proposal on behalf of the entire coalition, but during the debate, the VVD said that the D66 name should not appear under the proposal. Then D66 countered, saying it was only their motion. This led to the coalition being publicly reprimanded, and the motion was not passed.

At the end of the debate, the VVD suddenly submitted a motion stating that the coalition parties will "conduct exploratory talks with Hart voor Den Haag about the participation of Hart voor Den Haag in the coalition." GroenLinks and PvdA voted against the measure, but that motion did garner enough votes for approval. After the result, the VVD announced the fall of the coalition after about seven hours of debate.

De Mos: PvdA and GroenLinks only have themselves to blame

The PvdA in The Hague said it is incomprehensible that the VVD left the local coalition. "The PvdA considers it irresponsible that the VVD is now choosing to end the cooperation with this coalition. The City of The Hague deserves better than this decision by the VVD," the party said.

De Mos said that PvdA and GroenLinks have themselves to blame for the fall of the coalition. "We were expelled from the Council on improper grounds. After that, as the winner of the elections, we were kept out of the coalition on improper grounds. Now they have kept the door shut, especially the PvdA."

VVD, CDA and D66 repeated after the vote that they are prepared to negotiate a coalition with Hart voor Den Haag. Together they would have 27 of the 45 seats on the council, more than enough for a majority. If the four parties reach an agreement, The Hague will receive its fourth coalition in five years.

De Mos said that he will make his first phone calls with other faction leaders on Friday. He said he hopes that The Hague will have a new coalition before the end of the recess. That coalition must mainly work on restoring confidence among city council members and among citizens, but as far as he is concerned, it must also deal with increased tax burdens.

Hart voor Den Haag was expelled from the coalition in 2019 after raids on offices in City Hall. That led to the arrest of De Mos, several party members, and entrepreneurs from their circle. Regarding the planned appeal in the case, De Mos said he was looking forward to it the court case with confidence.

In a statement, the PvdA said that the acquittal has created a unique political situation. "The PvdA embraces the call to work together on a policy of trust in The Hague. The conversation and debate about this has only just begun.