Nearly half of all Dutch people do not think the current conservative coalition cabinet will serve its full four-year term until 2013, a survey suggests.

Forty-nine percent of respondents expect the government will fall before then. The eurozone crisis has already toppled governments in Greece, Italy and Spain. The two-party minority cabinet led by Prime Minister Mark Rutte has been in power for a little over 13 months.

Tensions arose this week within the government over the need for further budget cuts on top of the 18 billion euros already agreed. MP Geert Wilders of the Freedom Party, which props up the minority government, suggested to cut four billion euros in development aid. This is something which most Christian Democrats (the junior coalition party) oppose, but which four out of five pro-business VVD voters (the senior party) support, according to the same survey.

Deputy Foreign Minister Ben Knapen, a Chrisitan Democrat, has since confirmed that the amount of development aid will remain unchanged at 0.7 percent of GDP.

The current coalition government depends on the Freedom Party for a majority in parliament. About a third of Christian Democrats, including several MPs and cabinet ministers, opposed forming a minority cabinet that depended on the Freedom Party for its survival.

(cl/tt)

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