Schoof cabinet

Asylum

The coalition agreement included plans to issue a "well-substantiated" statutory instrument to suspend certain provisions of the Aliens Act and to introduce an Asylum Crisis Act without delay. It was agreed that no new asylum applications would be processed and that the Dispersal Act would be revoked.^[16][17][18] The coalition parties called their migration policy the most stringent and extensive in history.^[19] In October 2024, the coalition parties agreed that the proposal to use emergency powers would be abandoned, and new legislation would be introduced to enact asylum measures, most of which were outlined in the coalition agreement, along with some additional provisions.^[20][21][22] New asylum laws were sent to the Council of State, a required advisory step; the Council said that the government had not made it plausible that these measures would lead to fewer asylum seekers coming to the Netherlands or that these laws would streamline the asylum processes.^[23] The Council of State recommended against proceeding with these laws.^[24] The Cabinet voted in favour of the laws regardless.^[25] They have yet to be discussed in parliament.

In a September 2024 letter to the European Commission, Minister of Asylum and Migration Marjolein Faber requested an opt-out for the Netherlands from European asylum and migration legislation in case of a treaty amendment. Such an exception can only be granted by the European Council, and the Commission responded that no treaty amendments were pending.^[26][27] Hungary later joined the Netherlands in requesting an opt-out.^[28]

Budgeting

Several financial setbacks arose after the coalition parties had settled on the budget in their coalition agreement, and the Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis (CPB) concluded in August 2024 that government finances would deteriorate in the absence of intervention.^[29] The leaders of the coalition parties met that same month with the cabinet to finalize the 2025 budget.^[30] During talks, NSC leader Pieter Omtzigt threatened to withhold support, because he believed the unemployed and pensioners did not sufficiently benefit. This would have led to the fall of the cabinet.^[31]

In response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the coalition parties agreed to increase defense spending to adhere to the NATO target of 2% of GDP. Minister Ruben Brekelmans and State Secretary Gijs Tuinman announced €2.4 billion in increased yearly funding for the Netherlands Armed Forces in September 2024. This would go towards attracting more personnel and the purchase of munitions: 46 Leopard 2A8 battle tanks, six F-35 fighter jets, two Anti-Submarine Warfare Frigates, and several NH90 military helicopters. The Netherlands had been left without tanks since 2011 because of budget cuts.^[32][33] In addition, a further €2.6 billion was allocated towards the purchase of short- and medium-range air defense systems.^[34]

To decrease the projected budget deficit, cuts for development aid and education were planned as well as an increase in the sales tax on hotel stays, sports, culture, books, and newspapers from 9% to 21% starting in 2026. Opposition parties, holding a majority in the Senate, threatened to block the tax plan because of their opposition to the latter measure. Minister of Finance Eelco Heinen ultimately committed to seeking an alternative to the proposed tax increase on sports, culture, books, and newspapers before its effective date. The measure remained in the plan to avoid a €1.2 billion annual funding gap.^[35][36] Regarding development aid – renamed from "development cooperation" – the cabinet intended to cut the yearly allocated budget by €2.4 billion, over a third of its total, starting in 2027. The percentage of the budget spent on sheltering asylum seekers in the Netherlands would be contained to 10%, and aid related to water management and food security would be prioritized.^[37]

The cabinet intended to cut funding education by €2 billion, half of which for higher education and science. The latter would be achieved through lowering the number of international students, increasing tuition for students exceeding the standard duration, reducing money allocated to the Fund for Research and Science, and scrapping research grants. The latter had been created by the previous cabinet.^[38] The plans sparked a protest, and opposition parties presented alternative proposals in November 2024.^[39][40][41] To gain Senate support, coalition parties negotiated with centrist and conservative parties, calling themselves the "unholy alliance". After two weeks, an agreement was struck to reduce the €2 billion cut by €750 million.^[42][43] The Dutch Student Union was relieved that the proposed tuition increase for students exceeding the standard duration was reversed, while Universities of the Netherlands called scientific research the biggest loser of the compromise.^[44]

November 2024 Amsterdam riots

In the wake of the November 2024 Amsterdam riots, in which supporters of the Israeli football club Maccabi Tel Aviv F.C. clashed with pro-Palestinian locals, Schoof said that he was "ashamed" and "horrified by the antisemitic attacks on Israeli citizens."^[45][46] Following an 11 November Council of Ministers meeting, he blamed a specific group of young people with a migration background for the attacks, and he said that the events pointed to a broader integration issue. Integration state secretary Jurgen Nobel stated that a significant portion of Islamic youth did not endorse Dutch norms and values.^[47][48]

On 15 November, State Secretary Nora Achahbar announced her resignation citing "polarizing interactions during the past weeks." Reports circulated of offensive, radical, and potentially racist remarks about the Amsterdam attacks during the Council of Ministers meeting. Schoof invited the leaders of the four coalition parties to join the cabinet for crisis talks to avert a cabinet collapse, and they finally agreed that other cabinet members of NSC would stay on. Schoof denied allegations of racism within the cabinet and coalition parties, and he refused to release minutes of the meeting, which opposition parties had requested.^{[49][50][51][52][53]} Achahbar later denied that her departure was because of racism, and members of parliament Rosanne Hertzberger and Femke Zeedijk of NSC resigned in her support.^[54][55] Achahbar was replaced by Sandra Palmen.^[56]

Cabinet changes

State Secretary for Tax Affairs and the Tax Administration Folkert Idsinga (NSC) resigned on 1 November 2024, citing a perceived lack of trust by the House. PVV leader Geert Wilders had joined opposition parties in demanding transparency about Idsinga's retirement savings, which included business interests and could create conflicts of interest. His savings, valued at over €6 million in 2023, were managed by a foundation for the duration of his term, and Idsinga refused to provide more visibility, citing his privacy.^[57][58] Idsinga was succeeded by Tjebbe van Oostenbruggen.^[59]

Agriculture and nitrogen crisis

The Netherlands had been mandated by the European Union to stop the deterioration of nature in Natura 2000 sites by 2030, and goals with regard to nitrogen deposition had been enshrined in national legislation.^[60] The coalition agreement reduced the fund allocated towards addressing the nitrogen crisis from €25 billion to €5 billion.^[6] In September 2024, Minister Femke Wiersma terminated the National Program for Rural Areas, which had been created by the fourth Rutte cabinet in response to the crisis and which tasked provinces with devising plans to improve the quality of nature and water based on a national fund.^[61][62]

Wiersma presented the outline of her alternative plans and a provisional breakdown of the €5 billion in funding in late November 2024. The cabinet aimed to increase agricultural lands designated as nature reserves from 100,000 ha (250,000 acres) to 280,000 ha (690,000 acres) by expanding subsidies for farmers. The cabinet allocated between €1.25 billion and €2.5 billion towards innovations to reduce nitrogen emissions, and it planned to set emissions targets for farms instead of prescribing certain measures. The same amount would be available for a voluntary buyout scheme for farmers considering to leave the sector. Furthermore, Wiersma plans to postpone enforcement of nitrogen emissions regulations for a group of farmers left without a permit due to a 2019 Court of State ruling for another three years. The Netherlands Agricultural and Horticultural Association [nl] responded that farmers would remain uncertain about their future because of the latter.^[63][64]

In December 2024, the Administrative Jurisdiction Division of the Council of State ruled that unused nitrogen emission rights could no longer be allocated to other construction and expansion projects. Instead, a new permit would be required. The judgement retroactively invalidated such usage of the rights during the past five years, and Schoof established a committee comprising several cabinet members to explore measures to prevent widespread project delays.^[65][66]

Exit of the PVV

On 26 May 2025, PVV leader Geert Wilders presented a ten-point plan for new asylum measures, including the rejection of all asylum seekers and the return to their home country of Syrians who have applied for asylum or are in the Netherlands on temporary visas.^[67]

On 2 June, a coalition meeting between the parties took place. The other coalition parties maintained that the PVV could simply get down to work on Wilders' proposed new plan. By his own admission, Wilders himself did not notice any willingness among his coalition colleagues to do anything immediately. He stated to the press that it "doesn't look good" and that they would "sleep on it another night."^[68] On 3 June, after a brief meeting in which Wilders hoped that the leaders of the partners would agree to his plan, he announced that he would withdraw his ministers from the cabinet. The coalition governing partners and the opposition accused him of not taking responsibility.^[69][70] At the request of nine ministers of the PVV, King Willem-Alexander relieved them of their duties, and the resignations tendered by other ministers were considered by the King. The cabinet was transformed into a caretaker cabinet (demissionary cabinet).^[71]

Exit of NSC

On 22 August 2025, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Caspar Veldkamp, resigned after not agreeing with the ministers and state secretaries of VVD and BBB about taking further steps to put pressure on Israel, after the IDF launched an invasion into Gaza City and the deteriorating conditions for Palestinians on the West Bank. The same evening the rest of ministers and state secretaries of NSC also stepped down.^[72]