Dutch Deputy Prime Minister de Graaf resigns

Dutch Deputy Prime Minister Thom de Graaf resigned yesterday after losing a key parliamentary vote on electoral reform, amid speculation the ruling coalition was in danger of collapse.

The resignation put a major strain on Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende's coalition of Christian Democrats (CDA), VVD liberals and the D66 centrist party, raising the prospect of even an early election.

Mr Balkenende was quick to play down talk that his coalition was in danger of imploding as a result of his cabinet colleague's resignation. D66 also dismissed talk of a government crisis after less than two years in power.

"There is enough support and commitment within the coalition parties to continue with the policies of this cabinet," Mr Balkenende told a late night parliamentary session.

The next general election is not due until 2007 but two coalition governments collapsed in rapid succession in 2002 in the Netherlands, once a byword for political stability.

"The Minister for Government Reform and Kingdom Relations... has this evening, the 23rd of March, tendered his resignation," the government information office said in a brief statement.

The centre-right coalition suffered a body blow on Tuesday when the opposition Labour Party (PvdA) and other small centre-left parties blocked an electoral reform bill put before the upper house by Mr de Graaf. Mr de Graaf had staked much on plans to replace state-nominated mayors with directly elected officials, by amending the constitution in a vote requiring an elusive two-thirds majority in the Senate.

Mr Balkenende left an EU summit in Brussels early yesterday when it appeared likely Mr de Graaf could resign.

The crucial Senate bill was voted down after a six-hour debate in The Hague on Tuesday after failing to secure a two-thirds majority. The PvdA, Socialist party and Green party, voted against the government.

Two coalitions have collapsed in the past three years. A recent opinion poll showed a swing towards left-wing opposition parties and away from the ruling centre-right coalition, which has faced protests from unions and students over public spending cutbacks.

In April 2002, then-Labour Prime Minister Wim Kok's centre-left cabinet resigned following a report on the botched role of Dutch peacekeepers in the Bosnian town of Srebrenica, where up to 8,000 Muslims were massacred in 1995.

In October 2002 a newly elected centre-right coalition of the CDA, VVD and the party of murdered anti-immigration populist Pim Fortuyn collapsed after just 87 days in office after a row among ministers.