Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte has said he is tendering his entire cabinet’s resignation, after failing to come to an agreement with coalition partners about immigration policy. The move was sparked by differences between Rutte’s conservative VVD party and coalition counterparts over measures to limit the flow of asylum seekers to the country. As reported, the VVD is pushing for tighter controls but two of the four-party government coalition refused to support them. “It’s no secret that the coalition partners have differing opinions about immigration policy,” he said at a press conference late Friday, July 7. “Today we unfortunately have to conclude that those differences have become insurmountable. Therefore, in writing, I will tender the resignation of the entire cabinet to the king,” he added. “Migration is a large and important issue, both socially and politically. Now that we have failed to reach an agreement on this issue, we in the cabinet met to discuss the situation and collectively decided that the coalition had lost its political foundation,” Rutte said. He said it was “extremely regrettable” but acknowledged the “political reality we cannot avoid.” “Hereby, the entire cabinet and its leaders has become a caretaker government. The next step will be setting new elections.
