D66 appointee resigns from coalition talks due to abusive messages against the leader of the VVD party.
D66 appointee Hans Veers resigned after private messages were revealed in which he described VVD party leader Dilan Yesilgöz as "that witch from the VVD." He was informed of these messages by NRC newspaper, and he announced his decision to resign shortly after finishing his first meetings in office. D66 leader Rob Jetten stated on platform X that Veers would not be replaced, and that the other appointee, Sybrand Buma, would continue the task alone to avoid any delays.
Fiers clarified in his statement that the messages were part of a 'private communication between two individuals,' and that he made 'spontaneous comments that one would not say if they thought about it carefully.' The CDA party has appointed Buma as a second commissioner, and over the next three weeks, discussions will take place with Yetten and party member Henri Bontempel to explore options for forming a government.
In the Dutch system, the informateur (the one tasked with exploration) is responsible for searching for potential coalitions after the elections. He meets with party leaders to identify points of agreement and disagreement, and then advises the king or parliament on the best way to proceed with forming the government.
Fiers pointed out that the messages were sent long before the elections, and that he had previously faced criticism for comments he made about the VVD party and its leader during the election night rally. He emphasized that the government formation process is 'extremely important' and should not be overshadowed by his statements, and that the publication of those messages could harm his ability to work as a 'neutral appointee'.
Yetten described the resignation of Fierce as 'the only logical choice', pointing out that the language used was inappropriate, and that both reached the decision to resign in just one minute. For her part, Yeshilgoz expressed hope that the process of forming the coalition would 'actually start now', stating that she intends to meet with Yetten and Bontinbal to discuss the next steps. D66 and CDA will continue their talks alone for the time being, with the VVD party joining later.
D66 emerged as the largest party in the Tweede Kamer elections, while the CDA party came in third behind the PVV party. Since 2000, the average number of appointees in each government formation has been three, but the last two formations saw the appointment of four appointees each.