Geert Wilders, leader of the Party for Freedom (PVV), has announced the immediate withdrawal of his party from the Dutch government. The decision, delivered without prior warning during a brief coalition meeting this morning, triggered the resignation of all PVV ministers and has plunged the Schoof cabinet into crisis.
In a message posted on X shortly after 09:00, Wilders stated: “No signature for our asylum plans. No changes to the outline agreement. PVV leaves the coalition.”
Geen handtekening voor onze asielplannen.
Geen aanpassing Hoofdlijnenakkoord.
PVV verlaat de coalitie.
— Geert Wilders (@geertwilderspvv) June 3, 2025
The move follows weeks of tension over migration policy and comes less than six months after the coalition government — formed by PVV, VVD, NSC and BBB — was sworn in.
Immediate fallout
The decision took coalition partners by surprise and was met with disbelief and anger. VVD leader Dilan Yeşilgöz emerged visibly agitated from crisis talks, saying: “I am astonished and furious. Wilders is acting out of ego and self-interest. He throws away the chance for a right-wing government. This is grossly irresponsible.”
BBB leader Caroline van der Plas called the move “reckless” and accused Wilders of sabotaging the coalition despite having the tools to deliver his proposals. “The cabinet didn’t collapse because the plans couldn’t be implemented, it collapsed because they weren’t implemented quickly enough for him,” she said.
NSC leader Mirjam van Vroonhoven said Wilders’ decision was “incomprehensible”, adding: “It seems he no longer wants to be part of government.”
Asylum policy dispute
At the heart of the dispute lies the PVV’s ten-point asylum plan, which includes proposals widely deemed incompatible with European law. Wilders had demanded that the government’s outline agreement be amended to include these measures. The other coalition parties refused, citing legal constraints and insisting that PVV Minister Marjolein Faber could already act on many of the party’s proposals without changes to the agreement.
Wilders, however, insisted on formal inclusion of his demands and threatened to withdraw if this was not secured. Despite calls from coalition leaders to act in the national interest, he confirmed his departure Tuesday morning, less than an hour after the four party leaders met for crisis talks.
Political context
Commentators had long questioned the durability of a coalition involving the PVV. D66 leader Rob Jetten noted this morning: “If it hadn’t happened today, it would have happened next week. When you enter government with Wilders, things are bound to go wrong.”
Jetten also accused the other parties of allowing themselves to be “held hostage” by the PVV over the past year and a half, citing ongoing disputes and a lack of major policy breakthroughs.
According to political analyst Wilco Boom, Wilders’ decision mirrors the collapse of the previous Rutte IV government in 2023, which also fell over asylum policy. “Back then the VVD hoped to win an election by bringing the cabinet down. It didn’t work, and they lost ground to Wilders. Now he appears to be gambling that the next election will again be about asylum,” Boom said.
Boom added that the remaining coalition members appeared to have coordinated a firm position against further concessions to the PVV. “It looks like they’d had enough of Wilders’ ‘my way or no way’ stance,” he said.
Schoof cabinet expected to resign
All PVV ministers are now expected to step down. Although some, such as Minister Beljaarts — who is regarded as less aligned with the party’s ideological core — may remain on in a caretaker capacity, most are likely to exit immediately.
According to parliamentary sources, Prime Minister Dick Schoof is expected to offer the resignation of the cabinet to King Willem-Alexander before the end of the day. The government would then continue in a demissionary role until a new coalition is formed or elections are held.
Coalition mediator Richard van Zwol has not yet commented on the unfolding events. The question now facing Dutch politics is whether a continuation without PVV is possible, or whether fresh elections will need to be called.
Outlook
The collapse of the Schoof government marks the first time that Wilders has pulled his party out of an actual governing coalition. In 2012, he withdrew parliamentary support from the Rutte I minority government.
Despite calls for political stability amid international and domestic challenges, the Netherlands now faces renewed uncertainty. A caretaker government may attempt to steer key legislation in the coming months, but many observers believe a return to the polls is now the most likely scenario.
Read also:
Geert Wilders and the Reckoning on Migration: The Netherlands’ Hard Pivot on Syria Refugees
