After the government coalition in the Netherlands exploded, Prime Minister Mark Rutte no longer wants to run for a fifth term. The longest-serving head of government in the country’s history announced on Monday that he would retire after new elections in November.
The 56-year-old Rutte had previously indicated that he would like to be a candidate again, but that would depend on his conservative VVD party. “In recent days there has been a lot of speculation about what motivated me. The only answer is the Netherlands,” Rutte said in a speech in the House of Representatives ahead of a debate on the fall of the cabinet.
“Yesterday morning I made the decision that I am no longer available as chairman of the VVD. As soon as the new cabinet is formed after the elections, I will leave politics.”
The Dutch fear stagnation
Until then, the work of the incumbent government could come to a standstill, a fear that has often been expressed. In addition to migration policy, people in the Netherlands are also concerned about the housing shortage, the energy transition and climate policy. One of the major conflicts is the future of agriculture given the announced environmental regulations.
Rutte’s centre-right coalition of four parties collapsed on Friday over disputes over family reunification for asylum seekers. Rutte’s party wanted families to wait at least two years for reunification, which coalition partners rejected. Over the weekend, they largely blamed him for the government crisis.
Homemade asylum crisis
The Netherlands is struggling with a mainly self-made asylum crisis: to save money, the government had cut staff and places in reception centers. The waiting time for the processing of asylum applications has become longer and longer. In addition, the general misery on the housing market means that there are hardly any free spaces in the homes.
Rutte became prime minister in 2010 and is the longest-serving head of government in the European Union after Viktor Orban in Hungary. He was in office for almost 13 years.
Source: Krone
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