Far-right leader Geert Wilders throws Dutch politics into turmoil by pulling party from ruling coalition
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Diverging Reports Breakdown
Dutch government collapses after far-right leader quits coalition after migration feud
Prime Minister Dick Schoof confirmed he was stepping down on Tuesday. He is expected to offer the resignation of the cabinet to King Willem-Alexander before the end of the day. The decision means the Netherlands will have a caretaker government when it hosts a summit of Nato leaders in three weeks. Mr Wilders demanded coalition partners sign on to a 10-point plan that aims to radically slash migration, including using the army to guard land borders. He said at the time that if immigration policy is not toughened up, his party “is out of the Cabinet” No date for a new election has been set, but it is unlikely before autumn. The far-right party won the last election on pledges to slash migration.
Prime Minister Dick Schoof confirmed he was stepping down on Tuesday, and is expected to offer the resignation of the cabinet to King Willem-Alexander before the end of the day.
The announcement completed a day of political turmoil in The Hague sparked by Mr Wilders’ decision to turn his back on the ruling coalition less than a year after it was formed.
Mr Schoof said he would offer the resignation of ministers from Mr Wilders’ Party for Freedom to the Dutch king.
He and the other ministers will remain in office in a caretaker capacity, he told reporters.
The decision means the Netherlands will have a caretaker government when it hosts a summit of Nato leaders in three weeks.
No date for a new election has been set, but it is unlikely before autumn.
Mr Schoof, a career civil servant who was handpicked by Mr Wilders a year ago to lead the government, said he had repeatedly to coalition leaders in recent days that bringing down the government would be “unnecessary and irresponsible.”
“We are facing major challenges nationally and internationally and, more than ever, decisiveness is required for the safety of our resilience and the economy in a rapidly changing world,” Mr Schoof said.
Mr Wilders announced his decision early Tuesday in a message on X after a brief meeting in parliament of leaders of the four parties that make up the fractious administration.
Mr Wilders told reporters that he was withdrawing his support for the coalition and pulling his ministers out of the Cabinet over its failure to act on his desire for a clampdown on migration.
“I signed up for the toughest asylum policy and not the downfall of the Netherlands,” said Mr Wilders, whose Party for Freedom is still riding high in Dutch opinion polls, though the gap with the centre-left opposition is negligible.
Coalition partners rejected that argument, saying they all support cracking down on migration.
Dilan Yesilgoz, leader of the right-wing People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy, said before the meeting that Mr Schoof urged the leaders to act responsibly.
“The prime minister who appealed to us this morning said that we are facing enormous international challenges, we have a war on our continent, an economic crisis may be coming our way,” Mr Yesilgoz told reporters in parliament.
But just minutes later, the meeting was over and so was Mr Wilders’ involvement in the government.
“I’m shocked,” Mr Yesilgoz said, calling Mr Wilders’ decision “super-irresponsible.”
After years in opposition, Mr Wilders’ party won the last election on pledges to slash migration. He has grown increasingly frustrated at what he sees as the slow pace of the coalition’s efforts to implement his plans.
Last week, Mr Wilders demanded coalition partners sign on to a 10-point plan that aims to radically slash migration, including using the army to guard land borders and turning away all asylum-seekers. He said at the time that if immigration policy is not toughened up, his party “is out of the Cabinet.”
Dutch Prime Minister Schoof resigns after far-right Wilders quits coalition
Dutch govt in crisis as far right leader Geert Wilders quits coalition over migration policy dispute. Prime Minister Dick Schoof has announced his decision to step down. Wilders threw the government into crisis on Tuesday by announcing that his Party for Freedom (PVV) had pulled out of the right-wing coalition. The remaining ministers would continue as a caretaker government. Any new election would likely not be held until October, according to a report in the Reuters news agency. The move comes days after nationalist conservative Karol Nawrocki was announced the winner of Poland’s presidential election, providing a boost for right- wing populists across Europe. The Netherlands will host a summit of NATO leaders in The Hague in three weeks.
Dutch govt in crisis as far right leader Geert Wilders quits coalition over migration policy dispute
Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof has announced his decision to step down, just hours after far-right firebrand Geert Wilders withdrew support for the coalition government in a row over immigration.
Wilders threw the government into crisis on Tuesday by announcing that his Party for Freedom (PVV) had pulled out of the right-wing coalition, because its three partners had failed to back his policies to crack down on asylum.
“No signature under our asylum plans. The PVV leaves the coalition,” the PVV leader said in a post on X after a short meeting in parliament of party leaders.
Following an emergency cabinet meeting called after Wilders’s announcement, Schoof said he would step down.
Ministers from Wilders’s PVV would leave the cabinet, while the remaining ministers would continue as a caretaker government, the Reuters news agency reported, adding that any new election would likely not be held until October.
‘Irresponsible’
Wilders’s coalition partners accused him of putting his own political interests ahead of the country’s at a critical moment for Europe.
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“There is a war on our continent. Instead of meeting the challenge, Wilders is showing he is not willing to take responsibility,” said Dilan Yesilgoz, leader of the conservative People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy.
“It is irresponsible to take down the government at this point,” Nicolien van Vroonhoven, leader of the centrist New Social Contract, said of the flamboyant far-right figure.
Opposition leader Frans Timmermans, head of the Labour/Green Left alliance, said he could “see no other way to form a stable government” than early elections.
‘Downfall of the Netherlands’
After years in opposition, the PVV won the most votes in the November 2023 elections at 23 percent by tapping into Europe’s rising populist tide with promises to fight immigration.
However, Wilders failed to win support to become prime minister, and Schoof, an unelected career bureaucrat, emerged as a compromise candidate. Wilders held no ministerial post.
Wilders has repeatedly criticised the coalition for failing to implement his party’s immigration proposals.
Meanwhile, although support for the PVV has remained strong in the polls, it has slipped to about 20 percent, putting it level with the opposition Labour/Green Left alliance.
Last week, Wilders demanded the coalition endorse a 10-point plan to slash immigration, including refusing all asylum requests and mobilising the army to patrol Dutch borders.
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“I signed up for the toughest asylum policy and not the downfall of the Netherlands,” Wilders told reporters on Tuesday as he explained his exit.
The move comes days after nationalist conservative Karol Nawrocki was announced the winner of Poland’s presidential election, providing a boost for right-wing populists across Europe.
The Netherlands will host a summit of NATO leaders in The Hague in three weeks.
Wilders throws Dutch politics into turmoil with new elections now on the horizon
Populist far-right lawmaker Geert Wilders plunges Dutch politics into turmoil. Wilders pulls his party’s ministers from the ruling coalition over a crackdown on migration. Decision means the Netherlands will have a caretaker government when it hosts a summit of NATO leaders. No date for a new election has been set, but it is unlikely before the fall of the fall.. Prime Minister Dick Schoof says he had repeatedly told coalition leaders in recent days that bringing down the government would be “unnecessary and irresponsible.” Wilders’ decision comes days after conservative Karol Nawrocki was announced the winner of Poland’s weekend presidential runoff election, a victory that suggests that Poland will likely take a more populist and nationalist path under its new president, who was backed by U.S. President Donald Trump.“I signed up for the toughest asylum policy and not the downfall of the Netherlands,” said Wilders, whose Party for Freedom is still riding high in Dutch opinion polls.
The decision means the Netherlands will have a caretaker government when it hosts a summit of NATO leaders in three weeks.
Prime Minister Dick Schoof held an emergency Cabinet meeting to discuss the crisis and then visited King Willem-Alexander to offer him the resignations of ministers from Wilders’ Party for Freedom.
Schoof, a career civil servant who was handpicked by Wilders a year ago to lead the government, said he had repeatedly told coalition leaders in recent days that bringing down the government would be “unnecessary and irresponsible.”
“We are facing major challenges nationally and internationally and, more than ever, decisiveness is required for the safety of our resilience and the economy in a rapidly changing world,” Schoof said.
Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof announcing handing the resignation of the PVV ministers in The Hague, Netherlands, Tuesday, June 3, 2025, after far-right leader Geert Wilders pulled his party out of the ruling four-party coalition in dispute over a crackdown on migration. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong) Photo:
No date for a new election has been set, but it is unlikely before the fall.
Schoof’s 11-month-old administration goes down in history as one of the shortest-lived governments in Dutch political history.
Wilders announced his decision early Tuesday in a message on X after a brief meeting in parliament of leaders of the four parties that make up the fractious administration.
Wilders blames inaction on migration.
Wilders told reporters that he was withdrawing his support for the coalition and pulling his ministers out of the Cabinet over its failure to act on his desire for a clampdown on migration.
“I signed up for the toughest asylum policy and not the downfall of the Netherlands,” said Wilders, whose Party for Freedom is still riding high in Dutch opinion polls, though the gap with the center-left opposition is negligible.
Coalition partners rejected that argument, saying they all support cracking down on migration.
Prime minister appealed for leaders to act responsibly.
Dilan Yesilgöz, leader of the right-wing People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy, said before the meeting that Schoof urged the leaders to act responsibly.
“The prime minister who appealed to us this morning said that we are facing enormous international challenges, we have a war on our continent, an economic crisis may be coming our way,” Yesilgöz told reporters in parliament.
But just minutes later, the meeting was over and so was Wilders’ involvement in the government.
“I’m shocked,” Yesilgöz said, calling Wilders’ decision “super-irresponsible.”
After years in opposition, Wilders’ party won the last election on pledges to slash migration. He has grown increasingly frustrated at what he sees as the slow pace of the coalition’s efforts to implement his plans.
Last week, Wilders demanded coalition partners sign on to a 10-point plan that aims to radically slash migration, including using the army to guard land borders and turning away all asylum-seekers. He said at the time that if immigration policy is not toughened up, his party “is out of the Cabinet.”
He made good on that pledge Tuesday.
Wilders’ decision comes days after conservative Karol Nawrocki was announced the winner of Poland’s weekend presidential runoff election, a victory that suggests that Poland will likely take a more populist and nationalist path under its new president, who was backed by U.S. President Donald Trump.
It is not the first time Wilders has turned his back on power. He pledged his support to a minority government led by former Prime Minister Mark Rutte in 2010, but walked away less than two years later after a dispute about government austerity measures.
“You know that if you work with Wilders in a coalition … it won’t go well,” Rob Jetten, leader of the opposition D66 party, told Dutch broadcaster NOS.
Other coalition leaders look to uncertain political future.
Caroline van der Plas, leader of the pro-agriculture populist Farmers Citizens Movement that is part of the coalition, said she was angry at Wilders’ decision.
“He is not putting the Netherlands first, he is putting Geert Wilders first,” she told Dutch broadcaster NOS.
Nicolien van Vroonhoven, leader of the New Social Contract party that has taken a battering in polls since joining the coalition and the departure of its talismanic leader Pieter Omtzigt, said the government could continue without Wilders, saying a minority Cabinet “is definitely an option.” Schoof’s statement appeared to put an end to such a course of events.
Opposition welcomes Wilders’ departure.
Frans Timmermans, the former European Commission climate chief who now leads the main opposition bloc in parliament, welcomed Wilders’ decision. He said he would not support a minority government and called for fresh elections as soon as possible.
“Well, I think it’s an opportunity for all democratic parties to rid ourselves of the extremes because it’s clear that with the extremes you can’t govern. When things get difficult, they run away,” he told The Associated Press.
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This is quite a dramatic turn of events in Dutch politics. It’s surprising to see the coalition fall apart so quickly, especially with such a major NATO summit approaching. Mr. Wilders’ demands to slash migration seem extreme, and using the army to guard borders raises serious questions. Does this resignation really serve the country’s best interests at such a critical time? The caretaker government might struggle to handle international pressures during the summit. It’s concerning that no election date is set, leaving uncertainty hanging over the nation. What do you think about the long-term impact of this political turmoil on the Netherlands’ stability and its global standing?