Atlantic Sentinel

Tag: Mark Rutte

  • Rutte to Quit Dutch Politics. What Happens Next?

    Mark Rutte
    Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte arrives in Brussels to meet with other European leaders, February 12, 2015 (European Council)

    Mark Rutte stunned the Dutch parliament on Monday, when he told lawmakers he would not seek his center-right party’s nomination for a fifth term as prime minister.

    Rutte had already submitted his resignation to King Willem-Alexander after the four parties in his government failed to do a deal on asylum reform, but he left the door open in a news conference on Friday to running again.

    In power for thirteen years, Rutte is Europe’s longest-serving elected leader after Viktor Orbán. His surprise exit, combined with the meteoric rise of a new farmers’ party and the likely merger of the Labor Party and Greens, could redraw the Dutch political landscape, which has been dominated by Rutte’s People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) for thirteen years.

    Rutte stays on as caretaker until a successor can be sworn in, which could be a year from now. Elections aren’t due until November. Forming a coalition government in the Netherlands usually requires months of negotiation. Reforms in agriculture, housing and labor law may be put on hold in the meantime. (more…)

  • Rutte Calls Early Election After Failed Push to Reform Asylum

    Sigrid Kaag Mark Rutte
    Finance Minister Sigrid Kaag and Prime Minister Mark Rutte of the Netherlands listen to a debate in parliament in The Hague, September 21, 2022 (ANP/Sem van der Wal)

    Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte announced the dissolution of his fourth cabinet on Friday after two days of negotiations that ran deep into the night on Thursday failed to unite the ruling parties behind a plan to reform asylum law.

    Rutte’s center-right VVD (of which I am a member) and the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) had demanded reforms to reduce immigration, which reached a record 400,000 last year. The Christian Union and left-liberal D66 would not support stricter rules for family reunification.

    Rutte tendered his resignation to King Willem-Alexander, who returned from holiday in Greece, on Saturday. He stays on as caretaker prime minister until a new government can be formed. Elections are expected to be held in November.

    Rutte’s VVD is neck and neck in the polls with the right-wing Farmer-Citizen Movement. It won the provincial elections in March. (more…)

  • Victory for Farmers’ Party Is Challenge to Dutch Government

    Sigrid Kaag Mark Rutte
    Finance Minister Sigrid Kaag and Prime Minister Mark Rutte of the Netherlands listen to a debate in parliament in The Hague, September 21, 2022 (ANP/Sem van der Wal)

    The outcome of provincial elections in the Netherlands threatens to divide Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s ruling coalition.

    The Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA), the third party in Rutte’s four-party government, lost a third of its voters to the populist Farmer-Citizen Movement (BBB), which placed first. Many told exit pollsters they switched because of the CDA’s support for reductions in farming.

    Pieter Heerma, the CDA group leader in parliament, told reporters the election had created a “new political reality.” Party leader, and foreign minister, Wopke Hoekstra added that the government’s farm policy would need to be reassessed.

    But the left-liberal D66, which also lost seats but to more left-wing parties, insists that cuts in ammonia pollution must be made by 2030. “We don’t suddenly believe something different a week after the election than we did a week before the election,” group leader Jan Paternotte explained.

    Rutte’s own party (of which I am a member) is split. Its youth wing shares the view of D66. So do pro-business liberals, egged on by the Dutch employers’ association, which has advised against delay. Conservatives are wary of expropriating farmers for the sake of environmental protection.

    BBB leader Caroline van der Plas expects the government — Rutte’s fourth since 2010 — will collapse, which would trigger early elections that her party could win. (more…)

  • Despite Right-Wing Gains, Dutch Election Could Push Rutte Left

    Mark Rutte
    Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte is received by Jan Peumans, the speakers of the Flemish parliament, in Brussels, October 15, 2015 (Vlaams Parlement)

    The Dutch prime minister, Mark Rutte, may have little choice but to ally with the left-wing Labor Party and Greens after next week’s provincial elections, even if his own and competing right-wing parties make gains.

    Rutte’s liberal VVD (of which I am a member) is up in the polls, as is Geert Wilders’ Freedom Party (PVV) and the new Farmer-Citizen Movement (BBB).

    JA21, a conservative offshoot of the far-right Forum for Democracy, would also win seats.

    Their views on climate, farm and immigration policy could make it hard for Rutte to do deals with right-wing senators, who are elected by provincial deputies in May. (more…)

  • Why the Netherlands Is Calling for EU Asylum Reform

    Roberta Metsola Mark Rutte
    Roberta Metsola, the president of the European Parliament, speaks with Prime Minister Mark Rutte of the Netherlands in Prague, Czech Republic, October 7, 2022 (European Council)

    Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte is arguing for stricter European asylum rules and finding a listening ear in Brussels.

    “What you see is that everyone fell asleep a little during corona,” he said after meeting with European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, whose proposals match his own. “At the time, the asylum figures were very low.”

    An increase in applications after COVID overwhelmed the Dutch immigration system. Several hundred asylum seekers had to camp and sleep outside the application center in Ter Apel, where there weren’t enough beds free. (more…)

  • Farm Crisis Divides Dutch Government

    Mark Rutte
    Prime Minister Mark Rutte answers questions from Dutch lawmakers in The Hague, September 17, 2020 (Tweede Kamer)

    Farm protests in the Netherlands have divided Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s four-party coalition.

    Foreign minister and deputy prime minister Wopke Hoekstra, who leads the junior Christian Democratic party, told the AD newspaper last week that the government’s ambition to halve nitrogen emissions by 2030 was no longer “sacrosanct”.

    Christianne van der Wal, the minister who designed the targets, and a member of Rutte’s liberal party (of which I am a member too), publicly described Hoekstra’s seeming capitulation to demonstrating farmers as “unpleasant”. Het Parool, the newspaper of Amsterdam, reports she privately called it a “stab in the back.”

    Sigrid Kaag, the finance minister and leader of the left-liberal D66, accused Hoekstra of undermining “trust” between the ruling parties.

    Rutte downplayed the split on Tuesday, arguing Hoekstra had a right to speak his mind as party leader, even if, as a member of the cabinet, he is expected to represent the government’s policy. (more…)

  • Rutte Between Rock and Hard Place in Dutch Farm Crisis

    Mark Rutte
    Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte arrives at NATO headquarters in Brussels, June 14, 2021 (NATO)

    Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte finds himself between a rock and a hard place.

    His government’s plan to reduce pollution from farms, which requires reductions in livestock, has caused farmers and their sympathizers to leave his liberal VVD and Christian democratic coalition partner, CDA. Both parties are down in the polls.

    But to the extent that Rutte is willing to give in to farmers’ demands, it disappoints left-wing voters, which hurts his other governing partner, D66.

    It’s one of the issues I discussed last week with Alex Keeney and Atlantic Sentinel contributor Pratik Chougule on their podcast for political prediction markets, Star Spangled Gamblers. Can the center in the Netherlands hold? (more…)

  • Commission Sides with Rutte over Macron on Industrial Policy

    Emmanuel Macron Mark Rutte
    French president Emmanuel Macron speaks with Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte during a European Council summit in Brussels, June 24, 2018 (Elysée/Philippe Servent)

    The European Commission has sided with the Netherlands and smaller nations against a Franco-German proposal for industrial policy.

    The decision is a victory for Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte, who has formed a loose alliance of likeminded Central and Northern European member states to prevent a lurch to protectionism in a Europe without the UK. (more…)

  • Revelations in Benefits Scandal Make Rutte’s Job Even Harder

    Dutch parliament The Hague
    Debate in the Dutch parliament in The Hague, March 15, 2020 (Tweede Kamer)

    Revelations that his outgoing government deliberately withheld information from parliament have made it even harder for Prime Minister Mark Rutte, in power since 2010, to form a new government in the Netherlands.

    Cabinet minutes, normally kept secret for 25 years but released after they had leaked to RTL Nieuws, reveal that ministers agreed not to share all relevant files in the so-called child benefits scandal, which caused Rutte’s four-party government to resign in January.

    Between 2013 and 2019, some 26,000 parents were wrongly accused of benefit fraud. Many were financially ruined by demands to pay back tens of thousands of euros in child support.

    Pieter Omtzigt, at the time a backbencher for the ruling Christian Democrats, had requested internal documents from the tax agency that would disclose when civil servants had first advised ministers of the mistakes.

    Withholding information from parliament is a capital offensive in Dutch politics, but Omtzigt’s request was unusual. Ministers are politically responsible for their departments. Parliamentarians have long accepted that civil servants need to be able to make their recommendations in confidence.

    Omtzigt argued for an exception. The minutes reveal Finance Minister Wopke Hoekstra, the Christian Democratic party leader, tried to “talk sense” into Omtzigt, who would not relent.

    In the election in March, Omtzigt won a third of all votes for the Christian Democrats. His persistence in bringing the child benefits scandal to light has made him one of the most popular politicians in the country — but not necessarily in The Hague, where even some in his own party consider him a loose cannon. (more…)

  • Rutte’s Opponents Smell Blood in the Water

    Mark Rutte
    Prime Minister Mark Rutte answers questions from Dutch lawmakers in The Hague, September 17, 2020 (Tweede Kamer)

    After eleven years in power, Mark Rutte is suddenly vulnerable.

    The long-ruling Dutch prime minister won his fourth election in a row in March, but botched coalition talks have thrown his future into doubt.

    What started with suspicions Rutte had tried to get rid of a critical lawmaker turned into a wider question about his credibility.

    But discontent in other parties about Rutte’s longevity also plays a role.

    Before I dive in, let me remind you I’m a member of Rutte’s political party and voted for him in March. So this is not going to be an unbiased analysis, and the reason I’m publishing it as an opinion story. (more…)

  • Rutte’s Future in Doubt After Botched Coalition Talks

    Emmanuel Macron Mark Rutte
    French president Emmanuel Macron speaks with Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte during a European Council summit in Brussels, June 24, 2018 (Elysée/Philippe Servent)

    Two weeks after parliamentary elections in the Netherlands, attempts to form a coalition government have broken down amid incriminations that could put Mark Rutte’s prime ministership at risk.

    Rutte won the election, but a botched start to the negotiations to form his fourth government has thrown doubt on his political survival.

    The liberal has been in power since 2010. (more…)

  • Dutch and Spanish Leaders Share Vision for EU

    Mark Rutte Pedro Sánchez Charles Michel
    Prime Ministers Mark Rutte of the Netherlands and Pedro Sánchez of Spain speak with European Council president Charles Michel in Brussels, July 20, 2020 (European Council)

    Less than a year ago, Mark Rutte and Pedro Sánchez were on opposite ends of the debate about the EU’s coronavirus recovery fund. Sánchez and other Southern European leaders called for grants financed by EU-issued bonds. Rutte and his allies preferred loans. The two sides eventually split the difference.

    Now the two prime ministers, one center-right, the other center-left, have made common cause for a version of European “strategic autonomy” that is more liberal than Emmanuel Macron’s.

    In a joint “non-paper“, the Dutch and Spanish leaders endorse strategic economy as a means to an end — growth and security — but not an end in itself. They caution it mustn’t become an excuse for isolation and protectionism. (more…)

  • Rutte Wins Dutch Election, Pro-EU Party Places Second

    • Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s liberal VVD placed first in parliamentary elections in the Netherlands on Wednesday but fell short of a majority.
    • Three or four parties will be needed to form a coalition government.
    • The social-liberal and pro-European D66, which has governed with Rutte since 2017, placed second, pushing Geert Wilders’ Freedom Party (PVV) into third place.
    • The PVV lost seats to the more radical Forum for Democracy (FvD).
    • The combined populist right, including newcomer JA21, is projected to win more seats than the Labor Party, Greens and far-left Socialists combined. (more…)

  • Rutte Is More Pro-EU Than His Critics Allow

    Mark Rutte
    Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte makes a speech in the European Parliament in Strasbourg, June 13, 2018 (European Parliament/Fred Marvaux)

    Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte is criticized from the left and center for failing to make the argument for the EU integration in his reelection campaign.

    The Financial Times, which a few days ago selectively quoted from Rutte’s televised debate with far-right leader Geert Wilders to make him and not Wilders out to be the bigot, has listened to his critics and concluded that Rutte is following, rather than leading, Dutch public opinion on the EU.

    That’s hardly an outrage in a democracy, but I don’t think it tells the whole story. The prime minister who once promised to give “not one cent more” to Greece (and then agreed to another bailout) has become more pragmatic about European integration. (more…)

  • Financial Times Smears Netherlands’ Rutte as Bigot

    Mark Rutte
    Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte arrives in Brussels to meet with other European leaders, February 12, 2015 (European Council)

    In an hour-long election debate with Geert Wilders on Thursday night, Prime Minister Mark Rutte took his far-right opponent to task for treating nonnative Dutch as second-class citizens. He pointed out that Wilders wants to ban the Quran, close mosques and deny voting rights to dual citizens.

    Because Morocco won’t allow even the descendants of Moroccan nationals to give up their passport, Wilders’ proposal would disenfranchise some 400,000 Dutch citizens, including the speaker of parliament, Khadija Arib.

    It is a plainly racist proposal, and Rutte called Wilders out on it — thrice. He asked Wilders to consider the effect of his rhetoric on the hundreds of thousands of Dutch Muslims of good will, not in the least children, some of whom Rutte teaches civics every week on a middle school in an immigrant neighborhood of The Hague.

    He demanded an apology from Wilders for his infamous 2014 election promise to get “fewer Moroccans” in the Netherlands. Far from apologize, Wilders said he wanted fewer Somalians and fewer Syrians as well, and he accused the liberal party leader of presiding over the “destruction” of the Netherlands by admitting so many non-Western immigrants.

    Rutte, as he has for years, ruled out forming a coalition government with Wilders’ Freedom Party.

    Here is how the Financial Times summarizes the exchange:

    Rutte … felt compelled to insist that he wasn’t in fact a Muslim — twice. Ahead of the debate, Rutte told [de] Volkskrant he was ready to seal Dutch borders in the face of another EU migrant crisis and declared the country’s values “nonnegotiable” for foreigners.

    Rutte’s preternatural ability to pander to the far right is part of the reason he is a shoo-in to keep his job for the next four years.

    I don’t know if the author, Mehreen Khan, speaks Dutch, but it doesn’t sound like she listened to the debate. (more…)