THE BREXIT victory has sparked calls for the Netherlands to follow Britain’s example and leave the EU.
By ALICE FOSTER
GettyWhat is Nexit?
Eurosceptic Dutch politicians are pushing for a Nexit - or Netherlands exit - from the EU in the wake of the Brexit vote.
Far-right leader Geert Wilders, from the anti-Islam Freedom party, is leading calls for a Dutch referendum on EU membership.
Mr Wilders immediately seized on the Brexit victory in Britain and said: “The Dutch population deserves a referendum as well.
“The Party for Freedom (PVV) demands therefore a referendum on Nexit, a Dutch EU exit.”
Mr Wilders and his party have been leading in several polls ahead of the next parliamentary elections in the Netherlands in March.
GettyWill the Netherlands have a referendum?
Rem Korteweg, senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform, said Mr Wilders’ party has a fair chance of becoming the biggest party in the election.
But Mr Korteweg said: “Even if it becomes the largest party, it doesn’t mean he is going to be able to form a Government. It is quite unlikely that he will able be able to form a Government.”
The failure to form a Government would mean that Mr Wilders would not be able to hold an in/out referendum on EU membership as promised.
Dutch voters in the Netherlands rejected an EU partnership deal to remove trade barriers with Ukraine during a referendum in April.
The referendum was triggered in this instance because Dutch citizens can voice opinions on legislative decisions if enough signatures are collected.
But Mr Korteweg said that the law stipulates that such referenda can only be held over “new pieces of legislation”, not EU membership.
He said that a referendum could be held over issues such as the EU’s TTIP deal with the US, the Canadian trade deal or measures over migration.
Brexit aftershocks: Who's next to leave the EU?
Wed, June 29, 2016After Britain voted to leave the EU, we look at which European countries want to hold their own EU referendum.
1 of 10
Frexit, Nexit or Auxit? Who will be next to leave the EU
Would the Dutch people vote for Nexit?
There are growing concerns over the Euro, the terrorism threat posed by open borders and the fragmentation of the EU after the Brexit vote.
But Mr Korteweg said: “Even if we were to have a referendum on EU membership in the Netherlands, Wilders would probably lose it.
“As a matter of principle, the majority still thinks that being a member of the EU makes economic sense.”
He said Dutch Eurosceptics had hailed the Brexit victory as the “beginning of the end of the EU” and said the Netherlands should follow suit.
But he said that the Government and “more moderate voices in Dutch society” were alarmed because the Netherlands relies on the EU’s single market.
