# Jetten's minority cabinet hangs in the balance after weekend talks

> D66, VVD and CDA met again on Sunday after the first day of weekend talks produced no announced result. VVD leader Dilan Yesilgöz called the minority cabinet a failed experiment.

Politics · published 2026-11-15 12:11 · updated 2026-11-15 15:22 · https://nlnow.nl/a/coalition-leaders-resume-talks-to-save-jetten-cabinet/

The leaders of D66, VVD and CDA resumed crisis talks at 11:00 on Sunday at the De Zwaluwenberg estate in Hilversum, with the future of Prime Minister Rob Jetten's minority cabinet at stake. By about 11:10 all six party leaders were inside.

On Saturday, Jetten and vice-premiers Dilan Yesilgöz (VVD) and Bart van den Brink (CDA) arrived shortly after 11:00. Faction leaders Jan Paternotte (D66), Ruben Brekelmans (VVD) and Henri Bontenbal (CDA) joined around 14:45. The group left in the evening, and nobody spoke to the press. On Friday, Jetten, Yesilgöz and Van den Brink had already held hours of crisis talks.

The crisis began after D66 and CDA struck a deal with opposition parties PRO and Volt on the tax plan (Belastingplan). The PRO and Volt amendment passed the Tweede Kamer on Thursday evening with 76 seats, the narrowest possible majority. The VVD voted against the tax plan and said the deal had caught it off guard ("overvallen").

After Friday's talks, Yesilgöz said: "This minority cabinet is a failed experiment, and the coalition cannot continue like this." She demanded a "fundamental reset" and wants the cabinet's political balance restored, saying: "Too much attention is being paid to the left. That's why, for us, this is a failed experiment.". She also floated the idea of bringing another right-wing party into the cabinet.

Jetten wants to carry on and said he is open to a "a serious fresh start". Van den Brink said cooperation is "under strain" but that a solution is still possible and he is hopeful. He said the cabinet has agreed to defend the tax plan, including the PRO and Volt amendment, in the Eerste Kamer.

Jetten cancelled his Sunday trip to Sint Eustatius and Sint Maarten because of the "current political situation", the RVD said. King Willem-Alexander will still attend the Statia Day celebration. Jetten has also skipped the climate summit in Antalya and an EU leaders' meeting in Dublin. The parties have agreed not to leak anything from the talks.

## Background

- **Tweede Kamer**: The House of Representatives, the lower and more powerful house of the Dutch parliament. Its 150 members are elected directly; it can amend bills and holds the cabinet to account.
- **Eerste Kamer**: The Senate, the upper house of the Dutch parliament. It cannot amend bills but can approve or reject them after the Tweede Kamer has passed them. Its 75 members are elected by the members of the provincial councils.
- **Belastingplan**: The Belastingplan is the annual tax bill: a package of proposed changes to Dutch tax law, submitted to the Tweede Kamer with the budget on Prinsjesdag. It covers rates and rules for taxes such as income tax, box taxes and other levies, and it can be amended during parliamentary debate. It takes effect only once the Tweede Kamer and Eerste Kamer have passed it.
- **RVD (Rijksvoorlichtingsdienst)**: The RVD is the Dutch government's information service, the communications unit that handles official public information and press communication for the cabinet and the Prime Minister. It is part of the Ministry of General Affairs. When it announces that a minister or the Prime Minister has changed plans, it is speaking on behalf of the government's official communication.

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