Prime Minister Rob Jetten has struggled to rein in political infighting within his minority coalition, a crisis that culminated when disagreements arose over a so-called "millionaire's tax" proposed by left-wing opposition parties.
Dutch Prime Minister Rob Jetten extended crisis talks with his coalition partners over the weekend to stave off a government collapse, after an hours-long meeting on Friday failed to reach a consensus.
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
The crisis stems from disagreements between Jetten's centrist D66, centre-right CDA and right-wing VVD over the country's budget plans.
The already fragile unity in Jetten's Cabinet took a hit this week when lawmakers from his centrist D66 party and the center-right Christian Democrats (CDA) agreed to amendments proposed by two center-left opposition parties — PRO and Volt — to push a tax package through the Dutch parliament in a tight vote Thursday night after a daylong debate.
But the terms of the deal — PRO's leader Jesse Klaver repeatedly called part of the agreement a “millionaire's tax” — enraged the VVD.
The proposal aims to apply a higher tax of 38.5% on returns above €60,000, for example from interest earned on savings or investments. Anyone who makes less than €60,000 in profit from assets would not have to pay this higher rate.
The crisis erupted when the plan was passed by parliament after it had clinched support from left-wing parties to push through the tax deal. The VVD, however, voted against the government's own tax plan, with party leader Dilan Yeşilgöz-Zegerius saying she had been blindsided.
VVD calls minority coalition a 'failed experiment'
Following more than seven hours of crisis talks on Friday with his coalition partners, during which the government's future hung by a thread, Jetten emerged to reveal they would stay together, for now.
But Yeşilgöz told reporters after the talks she believed "the minority cabinet is a failed experiment and it cannot go on like this".
She called for a "fundamental reset" of the coalition and even Jetten acknowledged the need for a "serious fresh start".
"In recent days, many good things have happened, but also things that have not gone well... we have to do better," said Jetten.
"And that requires in-depth talks, which we began today. This conversation is not yet complete. For that reason, I will spend the next few days continuing these talks with the three coalition parties, in a calm and measured manner," said Jetten.
It is the latest crisis in a splintered political landscape in the Netherlands that has seen four general elections in a decade and eroded public trust in the nation's lawmakers.
Jetten, the Netherlands' youngest premier, took office pledging to seek a new era of consensus among parties in the Dutch parliament, but has so far struggled to rein in political infighting among parties in the legislature and even in his own coalition.
The latest spat has raised the prospect of snap elections just nine months after Jetten's government took office.
Polls show that the left-wing PRO party and their energetic young leader Jesse Klaver would win a snap election, with far-right firebrand Geert Wilders in second place.