Second Balkenende cabinet
The second Balkenende government means the government of the Netherlands led by Jan Peter Balkenende, which was formed on 27 May 2003. It consisted of three parties: the Christian Democratisch Appèl (CDA ), the Volkspartij voor de Vrijheid Democracy (VVD ) and the Democraten 66 ( D66 ). The Cabinet was come about after the first cabinet of CDA, VVD and LPF had fallen apart. This election had become necessary.
On June 29 2006 D66 announced the support for the coalition. The board members of D66 had previously supported a failed no-confidence motion against the Minister for Integration and Immigration Rita Verdonk (VVD ) after they wanted to escape the Dutch citizenship of the renowned Islam critic and chamber MPs Ayaan Hirsi Ali for misrepresentation in their asylum procedure in 1992. On June 30, Prime Minister Balkenende offered Queen Beatrix of the resignation of the Cabinet. On the advice of the Parliament towards the Queen proposed a minority government of CDA and VVD. This third Balkenende was used on 7 July 2006.
Education
On 24 January 2003 Queen Beatrix asked the Minister of Justice Piet Hein Donner of the previous coalition (CDA ) to mediate in the coalition negotiations. The negotiations were protracted. Originally, the election winner, the Christian Democrat CDA wanted to make with the right-wing liberal VVD coalition. Without the support of a third party, this formation would have had no majority in the Second Chamber of the States General. A partnership with Lijst Pim Fortuyn would have been unpopular after the events of the First Balkenende among voters and the left liberals of D66 wanted to join the alliance of two not initially. A government that would be supported by the conservative Christian parties SGP and CU, not met with the approval of the VVD.
There followed protracted negotiations between the CDA and the social democratic PvdA a large coalition. Both were almost equally strongly emerged from the elections. The negotiations were made more difficult by the different attitudes to war in Iraq, the bad economic forecasts and by the personal animosity between the two leading candidates Balkenende (CDA ) and Bos ( PvdA). After several months of marathon negotiations, the talks were finally declared Balkenende failed.
Now the deputies of D66 were finally willing to take a three-party coalition with CDA and VVD. The government here relies on a narrow majority of 78 of the 150 seats in the Second Chamber. When the VVD MP Geert Wilders left his party in September 2004, this already narrow majority was further decimated.
Composition
The government was composed of 16 ministers and 10 state secretaries. According to the group sizes in the Parliament of the CDA set 8 ministers ( including the Prime Minister ) and five secretaries of state, the VVD 6 ministers and secretaries of state 4 and D66 2 ministers and a secretary of state. Of these, 18 members of the government and in the First Balkenende active ( in the table by " * " marks ). The table uses the official German designation of the members of the government, as they are needed by the Dutch embassies.
Minister
Minister of General Affairs
Secretaries
Minister for Foreign Trade