The Dutch government collapsed.

The Dutch government collapsed over failure to reach a deal on immigration restrictions, triggering new elections next autumn.

The number of asylum seekers in the Netherlands has skyrocketed despite having some of Europe's toughest immigration policies. Photo: CNN

The crisis erupted after Prime Minister Mark Rutte's conservative VVD party pushed to limit the flow of asylum seekers to the Netherlands. However, two of the four parties in his coalition have refused to support the move.

“It is no secret that the coalition partners have different views on immigration policy,” Mark Rutte said at a press conference broadcast on national television on July 7 (local time). “Today we have regrettably concluded that these differences have become insurmountable. Therefore, I will submit the resignation of the entire cabinet to the king.”

CNN described the tension as coming to a head this week when Prime Minister Mark Rutte asked for support for a proposal to restrict the immigration of children of war refugees who had arrived in the Netherlands. The policy would also require families to wait at least two years before they could be reunited. The Christian Union and D66 parties called the latest proposal “too far” and led to a deadlock that resulted in the collapse of the Dutch government on July 7.

In that context, the Dutch National Election Commission said that new votes to form a replacement government will not be held before mid-November 2023.

For the time being, Mark Rutte's coalition will continue to lead the Netherlands as a caretaker government in the meantime.

CNN noted that this process usually takes months amid political rifts in the Netherlands. The interim government cannot decide on new policies, but Mark Rutte insisted that this would not affect the country's support for Ukraine in its conflict with Russia.

However, opposition lawmakers from the Freedom Party, the Green Left, etc. did not want to waste time and called for immediate elections.

The Netherlands has one of Europe’s strictest immigration policies. Under pressure from right-wing parties, Mr Rutte has been trying for months to find ways to further reduce the flow of asylum seekers.

Asylum applications in the Netherlands rose by 30% last year to more than 46,000 and the government has projected the figure could rise to more than 70,000 this year – surpassing the previous peak in 2015.

Prime Minister Mark Rutte, 56 years old, is the longest-serving prime minister in Dutch history and also the second longest-serving in the European Union (EU) after Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

Mark Rutte's current coalition took power in January 2022 and is his fourth consecutive government since he became prime minister in October 2010.

Migration is a key issue in next year's European Union (EU) Parliament elections but the issue has already sparked an early firestorm in the Netherlands.

During a visit to Tunisia last month, Prime Minister Rutte, along with his Italian counterpart and the president of the EU Executive Commission, pledged more than €1 billion to rescue the North African country's economy, with the aim of stemming the flow of migrants from its shores to Europe.

On July 5, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki also said that the EU should prioritize preventing illegal migration instead of trying to convince the 27 member states to share responsibility.

The Polish and Hungarian governments also stressed last week that stopping migrants from entering the EU was the most effective measure.

Compiled by NGUYEN TAN

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