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Far-right firebrand Geert Wilders has conceded he will not become the next prime minister of the Netherlands, as his Freedom party aims to form part of a coalition government.
The Freedom party sent shockwaves through Europe in November by coming first in Dutch parliamentary elections, winning 23 per cent of the vote and securing 37 seats in the 150 strong legislature.
But the centre-right NSC party, which Wilders needs to form a coalition government, made clear that it would not accept him as prime minister, said people briefed on the matter.
The conservative VVD — the party of outgoing prime minister Mark Rutte — and the populist agrarian Farmer Citizen Movement are also due to join the coalition.
Wilders, an anti-Islam campaigner, said on X on Wednesday: “I can only become Prime Minister if ALL parties in the coalition support it. That was not the case. I would like a right-wing cabinet. Less asylum and immigration. Dutch number one.
“The love for my country and voter is great and more important than my own position.”
Pieter Omtzigt, leader of the NSC party, last month walked out of talks about forming a coalition government, claiming Wilders’ spending proposals were unaffordable.
Omtzigt also attacked Wilder’s “unconstitutional” views on Islam, but has since returned to the negotiations.
VVD leader Dilan Yesilgöz has long said she could support a coalition with the Freedom party. The three other parties declined to comment on Wednesday.
The four party leaders involved in the coalition talks are expected to remain in parliament and nominate fellow MPs and technocrats to ministerial posts.
Kim Putters, the “scout” leading the negotiations, convened Wilders and the leaders of the other parties on Tuesday for the first time in weeks.
He said they were ready to take the “next step” and would present his recommendations about the planned coalition to parliament on Thursday.
Months of talks about the coalition’s programme lie ahead, with the budget a particularly difficult issue, as the Freedom party favours increased welfare benefits for the elderly.
The parties will also have to agree on the allocation of cabinet jobs and how long they will govern for.
“There will likely be only a short coalition agreement — but how short remains to be seen — and some government ministers may not be affiliated with a party,” said Tom Louwerse, associate professor of politics at Leiden University.
As the Freedom party aims to form part of the coalition, Wilders has vowed to “put in the freezer” his most controversial proposals such as the closure of mosques and banning the Koran.
But he has strongly criticised pro-Palestinian demonstrations and pursued his “Dutch first” rhetoric.
Wilders’ failure to become prime minister is the latest of several setbacks for the far-right movement in Europe.
In Portugal, the far-right Chega party has hit out at efforts by its mainstream rivals to keep it out of power after coming third in last week’s general election.
The hard-right Vox party came third in Spain’s general election last year, but failed to secure power.
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