Political situation in the Netherlands

 

Caroline van der Plas, leader of BBB. Peter Dejong / AP 

Farmer movement wants to challenge: "The campaign has started"  

An uncertain election campaign awaits in the Netherlands after Friday's government collapse. This is not least because of the new populist farmers' movement BBB, which has grown strong in a short time and is now being singled out as a serious challenger to outgoing Prime Minister Mark Rutte's center-right party VVD, AP writes.  

BBB leader Caroline van der Plas said Saturday that the party will dust off the election posters from this spring's provincial election in which their big successes shocked the political establishment.  

"The campaign has started," she writes on Twitter. 

Bloomberg writes that a June survey from the survey institute I&O showed that BBB was then the country's largest party, while a simultaneous survey from Ipsos showed that VVD was still the largest.  

AFP writes that the BBB's rapid growth has been due to the party being able to ride a wave of popular dissatisfaction with new EU rules that limit the agricultural sector for environmental and climate reasons. 

Gert Wilders/Lilian Marijnissen. TT  

The parties take positions after the collapse of the government  

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte formally submitted his resignation to King Willem-Alexander on Saturday, AP reports. This after the migration policy talks within his four-party government broke down on Friday.  

The migration issue is now expected to dominate the election campaign ahead of the by-election which, according to AFP, will likely be held in mid-November. Several parties have already positioned themselves, not least the immigration-critical far-right party PVV and its leader Gert Wilders.  

- We are the party that can muster a majority to greatly reduce the flow of asylum seekers, he says. The left is also mobilizing.  

Socialist Party leader Lilian Marijnissen says the government collapse is good news.  

- I think everyone felt that this government was over. It has created more problems than it has solved, she said on Saturday.