THE DUTCH government has collapsed after Geert Wilders withdrew his far-right party from the coalition amid an asylum row.
Hours later, Prime Minister Dick Schoof declared he would offer his resignation.
Wilders’ PVV party was the largest in the coalition.
Schoof slammed the decision to pull out as “irresponsible and unnecessary”.
He added: “As far as I’m concerned, this shouldn’t have happened.”
Earlier today, Wilders expressed his ambition to become the Prime Minister of the Netherlands, stating his goal to make the PVV larger than ever in the upcoming elections.
In a last-ditch effort to paper the cracks, Schoof called a meeting between coalition leaders on Tuesday morning.
But Wilders walked out after just a minute – sounding the death knell for the current government.
The flash-point was a row over asylum-seeker regulations.
Wilders had demanded ten additional measures – including a freeze on asylum applications and halting the construction of reception centres.
A snap election is expected to follow.
