Dutch government wins time to renegotiate Ukraine treaty in narrow vote
MPs have narrowly voted in favour of giving the cabinet more time to find a solution for the Dutch ‘no’ vote in the recent referendum on the EU’s treaty with Ukraine.
The Socialist Party put forward a motion calling on the cabinet to immediately withdraw its support for the treaty, which won the support of most of the opposition.
The two coalition parties and two independent MPs voted against, giving the cabinet a narrow win of 76 votes to 71. One MP from the ruling Labour party sided with the opposition, news agency ANP said.
Prime minister Mark Rutte told MPs last week that he stood no chance of winning any concessions on the treaty from Brussels if Dutch support had formally been withdrawn.
Opposition MPs say the prime minister must respect the result of the April 6 vote. Some 61% of those who took part voted against ratifying the treaty.
Officially the result of the referendum is advisory but Rutte has already said that setting aside the outcome is not an option.
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