Fall of the Cabinet: Differences can no longer be resolved

The ruling Dutch coalition has collapsed after failing to reach a deal over how to handle the number of asylum seekers entering the Netherlands, After days or talks between the key members of Mark Rutte’s Cabinet, they were unable to reach a compromise.

The swearing in of the fourth Cabinet of Prime Minister Mark Rutte on January 10, 2022 marked the end of the longest and messiest Cabinet formation ever, with a deep crisis of confidence from the beginning. Although the four parties from Rutte III unexpectedly continued to work with each other and promised a new administrative culture, the second time around for the VVD, D66, CDA and ChristenUnie was shaky from the start. Few people in political circles in The Hague expected the Cabinet to last, and after 543 days, the Cabinet has fallen because of the failed negotiations about policy towards asylum seekers.

Recovery from the coronavirus crisis and restoration of confidence in the national government seemed to be the theme of this new Cabinet.

That soon changed when Russia invaded Ukraine a month after the Cabinet took office. The war in Ukraine and support for that country played a leading role in national politics, and the ruling parties were often united.

The unrest arose again when Christianne van der Wal, the minister in charge of nitrogen policy, published a “nitrogen map” in June 2022, indicating the amount of nitrogen emissions that must be reduced at every location in the Netherlands. This led to fierce protests and threats from farmers.

In addition to the nitrogen discussion —in which D66 and CDA squared off against each other— the summer of 2022 was dominated by the asylum crisis.

It is likely that new elections will take place sometime in the autumn. The exact date will be announced later. The opposition parties want elections as soon as possible, they said after learning the news later on Friday evening.