EU ON EDGE: Dutch election could be catalyst to trigger huge collapse at heart of Eurozone

According to the latest poll published by Dutch research company Peil.nl on Sunday, Mr Rutte’s liberal VVD party, D66 and the CDA Christian Democrats are expected to lose support in the elections across 335 municipalities. 

Along with its Christian Union junior party, the coalition currently holds just a one-seat majority in the Dutch lower house of parliament. 

Today, Mr Rutte is meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron, who along with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, is looking to push through an agenda aimed at strengthening the eurozone. 

Earlier this month, the Dutch joined seven other northern EU countries (Finland, Ireland, Sweden, Denmark, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania) who want national governments to retain an upper hand but poor results for Mr Rutte could further limit his political room for manoeuvre.

The joint declaration between the nations came as talks on shoring up the single currency enter a critical stage, with French President Emmanuel Macron expected to start pushing for closer integration now that a governing coalition is in place in Germany. 

The lobby of northern countries is trying to anticipate any likely compromise between Paris and Berlin on the deepening of the Economic and Monetary union. 

The group is largely supportive in completing the EU’s banking union – a set of common rules on banking supervision and resolution for the bloc’s largest banks – and on ways to strengthen the euro-area’s bailout fund.

Mr Rutte wants a European monetary fund to be managed by national governments rather than Brussels and also opposes a border overhaul of the euro area’s institutional set-up, such as through the creation of a common finance minister. 

Political experts have warned that while the outcome of the Dutch local elections doesn’t necessarily translate to results in parliament as these ballots include local parties not affiliated with national groups, the results could be a driver for more party support.

Andre Krouwel, an associate professor in political science at Amsterdam’s VU University, told Bloomberg “angry” or so-called “protest voters” will likely play a key role in the elections today, while many more “moderate voters” will visit polling stations in their droves. 

Polls have indicated that Forum for Democracy, a right-wing anti-EU and anti-establishment party led by Thierry Baudet, which entered parliament last year, could see the number of seats it holds rise from just two to 18.

During the general election in March 2017, the anti-Islam and anti-European Freedom Party PVV was placed second with 20 of the 150 seats available in parliament. 

In today’s local elections, it is only on voting lists in 30 municipalities, including Rotterdam, The Hague and Utrecht – the three largest cities in the Netherlands after the capital Amsterdam.