Talks between the two Liberal parties D66 and VVD, Labour and the left-wing greens GroenLinks are heading towards a crucial phase this week, the NRC reports on Monday. The talks are now entering their third week and none of the party leaders would comment in any detail before Monday morning's session. In the meantime, it is apparent that the VVD have the most to lose from joining forces with the three left of centre parties, the paper says.
Differences
The party will have 31 out of 81 coalition seats in parliament if the talks come to fruition and is under pressure over its plans to slash government spending, the paper says. Over the past two weeks, the parties have been outlining their differences. 'The getting to know you phase is now over,' one insider told the paper.
Wilders
An internet poll by Maurice de Hond this weekend gave Geert Wilders' anti-Islam party 35 seats in parliament - making it by far the biggest party. The VVD lost eight seats in De Hond's poll, taking it back to 23. Labour was second - down three seats at 27. Wilders on Monday made a personal plea to VVD leader Mark Rutte not to join forces with Labour and the others. 'Purple plus will be a nightmare for the VVD,' Wilders said. Purple plus refers to the mixture of party colours. Initial talks on forming a right-wing coalition between the PVV,VVD and Christian Democrats stalled over CDA reluctance to get involved.
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