Dutch coalition’s majority quits

Dutch premier Mark Rutte has ruled out fresh elections after an anti-immigration MP quit a party that supports his coalition, depriving him of a parliamentary majority.

Hero Brinkman, a member of anti-immigration Freedom Party – that supports the Liberal-Christian Democrats coalition – resigned and complained party leader, Geert Wilders, allowed too little democracy. He also criticised his recently launched website that solicits complaints about eastern Europeans.

The loss of majority support means that Mr Rutte, of the conservative Liberal VVD party, will now have to bargain with Mr Brinkman, who will continue as an independent, or other smaller parties to pass legislation in the lower house where he now only has the guaranteed support of 75 of the 150 members.

“I don’t see any reason for elections,” Mr Rutte told reporters after the Socialist and GreenLeft opposition parties called for the country to go to the polls.

Mr Brinkman said he would continue to support the coalition from outside the Freedom Party, making an imminent government collapse unlikely.

Mr Brinkman, a 47-year-old former policeman, said he had quit because Mr Wilders was too controlling and he disagreed with Mr Wilders’ launch of a website which asks the public to post complaints about foreign workers.

The Netherlands, which has been in recession since July, needs a fresh round of austerity cuts – of up to €16 billion (£13.3bn) – if it hopes to hit a deficit target of 3 per cent of output next year, as required by the European Commission.

A state think-tank said the need for budget cuts was as urgent in the Netherlands as in Italy and Spain, EU countries that are usually considered less fiscally responsible than the Dutch.