Wilders will not become next Dutch PM in experimental ‘business government’ arrangement
The Dutch far-right leader Geert Wilders has agreed the basis of his first rightwing coalition government in the Netherlands.
Six months after his shock win of a quarter of parliamentary seats, his anti-Islam, anti-immigration Party for Freedom (PVV) will take the lead in an uneasy four-party coalition.
Continue reading...Polls indicate a surge for the right across the continent in next month’s ballots but the centrists are still likely to hold sway in parliament
Far-right gains in next month’s European elections will be hard, if not impossible, to parlay into more power in parliament, experts say, but they could boost nationalist parties in EU capitals – with potentially greater consequences.
Polling suggests far-right and hardline conservative parties could finish first in nine EU states, including Austria, France and the Netherlands, in the polls between 6 and 9 June, and second or third in another nine, including Germany, Spain, Portugal and Sweden.
Continue reading...Four parties have agreed to pursue ‘extra-parliamentary’ cabinet, says mediator overseeing tense coalition talks
Dutch coalition talks will move on from exploratory discussions to more concrete negotiations aimed at forming a largely technocratic government, after the far-right leader Geert Wilders accepted he could not be prime minister.
Four months after Wilders’ anti-Islam Freedom party (PVV) became the largest in parliament, Kim Putters, the former socialist senator overseeing the talks, said they would continue based on a cabinet of political veterans and outside experts.
Continue reading...Leader of far-right Freedom party, which came first in election last year, was unable to get all partners in a potential coalition onboard
Geert Wilders, whose far-right Freedom party (PVV) shocked the Netherlands by finishing first in elections late last year, has conceded that he will not be the next prime minister because his potential coalition partners do not back him.
“I can only become the prime minister if all the parties in the coalition support it. That was not the case,” Wilders said on X late on Wednesday. “Love for my country and voters is bigger and more important than my own position.”
Continue reading...Prime minister will reportedly meet CEO of semiconductor equipment maker ASML, which has warned against anti-migrant stance
The Dutch government is scrambling to ensure that the country’s largest company, the semiconductor equipment maker ASML, does not move operations or expand abroad after the tech firm voiced concerns over the country’s hardening stance on migrants.
On Wednesday, the Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf reported that the Dutch government had launched a cross-ministry effort, dubbed “Operation Beethoven”, to encourage ASML to continue to invest in the country.
Continue reading...NSC’s Pieter Omtzigt said to be shocked by public finances as he abandons talks to form coalition under far-right leader
Geert Wilders’ chances of forming a majority government in the Netherlands have been dealt a heavy blow after one of the far-right leader’s three potential partners abruptly withdrew from coalition talks citing concerns over public finances.
Wilders, whose Freedom party (PVV) shocked Europe by finishing first in elections last November, said on X he was “unbelievably disappointed” by the decision of New Social Contract (NSC) to declare it was “finished” with the current round of talks.
Continue reading...Ahmed Marcouch, directly targeted by Geert Wilders during his career, grapples with how best to heal country’s wounds
Soon after news broke that the populist Geert Wilders and his anti-Islam Party for Freedom (PVV) had won the most votes of any party in the Dutch elections, Ahmed Marcouch found himself comforting his distraught eight-year-old.
Earlier in the day, a teacher at his son’s school had explained the election results, discussing the wide differences between parties. Now Marcouch’s son was terrified that the family would have to leave the country.
Continue reading...Gom van Strien’s planned talks with party leaders have been cancelled after he stepped down. This live blog is closed
Irish police are expected to make sweeping arrests of suspected ringleaders of Thursday’s riot in Dublin and to obtain wider rights to use facial recognition technology to help identify suspects in any future disorder.
The moves come amid mounting pressure on the government and police chiefs over the violence on 24 November when an estimated 500 anti-immigrant activists and gangs of young people looted shops, burned vehicles and attacked officers, leaving swathes of Ireland’s capital resembling a war zone.
Continue reading...Blow to far-right leader as man chosen to oversee coalition talks quits over fraud claims
The far-right Dutch politician Geert Wilders has admitted that he was not off to a “dream start” in his attempts to form a government, after a man he appointed to oversee coalition talks quit over fraud allegations before getting started in the role.
Wilders and his Party for Freedom (PVV) look to have won almost a quarter of seats in the 150-seat Dutch parliament in last Wednesday’s elections, about 10 seats more than predicted.
Continue reading...Anti-Islam MP who won recent election says he will ‘continue to moderate’ his positions to gain power
Veteran Dutch anti-Islam politician Geert Wilders on Saturday vowed to be prime minister of the Netherlands, after an election in which his party won the most seats.
In a long post on X, formerly Twitter, that expressed frustration at other parties for their apparent unwillingness to cooperate with his Freedom party (PVV), Wilders said he would “continue to moderate” his positions if necessary to gain power.
Continue reading...Wilders’ far-right party won the most seats in Dutch election, though many in this diverse city say they can understand why
In this tiny plaza, still plastered with posters urging voters to back the minority rights party Denk, the yawning divide between voters in Rotterdam’s diverse Feijenoord district was on full display.
On one side stood Nas Kosa, a Muslim who fears what might lie ahead after Geert Wilders’ far right, anti-Islam party surged to win more seats than any other party in Wednesday’s election.
Continue reading...Talks begin with liberal leader warning people not to be fooled by Wilders’ ‘Mother Teresa’ act
The party of the Netherlands’ outgoing prime minister, Mark Rutte, has ruled out forming a government with the anti-Islam populist Geert Wilders, as coalition talks began following this week’s shock general election result.
Their decision removes the first building block of a potential partnership government with Wilders’ Freedom party (PVV), which caused a political earthquake after winning more seats than any other party in Wednesday’s vote.
Continue reading...Dutch general election results show how populist and far-right parties are advancing into political mainstream
Geert Wilders’ shock victory in the Dutch general election confirms the upward trajectory of Europe’s populist and far-right parties, which – with the occasional setback – are continuing their steady march into the mainstream.
There is no guarantee that Wilders, whose anti-Islam Party for Freedom (PVV) won 37 seats in Wednesday’s ballot – more than twice its 2021 total – will be able to form a government with a majority in the Netherlands’ 150-seat parliament.
Continue reading...Far-right leader also says he wants EU exit referendum, as other parties meet to consider joining coalition
Geert Wilders, the leader of the Netherlands’ far-right, anti-Islam Party for Freedom (PVV), has vowed to try to become prime minister and has said he is in favour of a referendum on the country’s EU membership after his party scored an unexpected and emphatic victory in Wednesday’s general election.
The PVV – whose manifesto included calls for bans on mosques, the Qur’an, and the wearing of Islamic headscarves in government buildings – won 37 seats in the 150-seat parliament, more than double its previous number.
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As the Netherlands – and European capitals – assess the unexpected outcome of the Dutch election, Geert Wilders is celebrating with cake.
The Austrian Freedom Party’s Harald Vilimsky said he is proud of his political friends, posting a photo with Italy’s Matteo Salvini, France’s Marine Le Pen and the Netherlands’ Geert Wilders.
Continue reading...Polls open for general election in the Netherlands, with four parties – ranging from left to far right – vying to take most votes
Dutch voters are voting in a knife-edge general election that will usher in the country’s first new prime minister in 13 years, with four parties from left to far right vying to become the largest in parliament.
From the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam to the islands of the Dutch Caribbean, more than 13 million voters will cast their ballot between 7.30am and 9pm in elections that could set the country on a different course after Mark Rutte’s four consecutive governments.
Continue reading...Leftwing parties urge people to vote tactically to prevent Geert Wilders’ party winning power
Leftwing parties in the Netherlands have urged people to vote strategically to avoid a far-right government after a poll showed last-minute gains for Geert Wilders’ Party for Freedom (PVV).
Wilders, whose manifesto calls for an asylum “stop” and ban on “Islamic schools, Qu’rans and mosques”, said it was a “game changer” when a poll on Saturday evening put him level with Mark Rutte’s party, the People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD).
Continue reading...Dutch anti-Islam lawmaker reveals his plans despite fears the move could spark attacks
Dutch anti-Islam politician Geert Wilders has revived his plan to hold a contest for cartoons caricaturing the Prophet Muhammad, more than a year after cancelling such an event out of fear for attacks in the Netherlands.
In a tweet late on Saturday, Wilders called on people to send in their Muhammad cartoons.
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