Talks on forming a new right-wing coalition government in the Netherlands are at a “sticky stage” but the negotiations have not yet broken down, sources have told the Volkskrant. 

And even if the four parties do reach a deal, the new cabinet will be a “marriage of convenience, at best,” NSC leader Pieter Omtzigt told reporters after Wednesday’s talks. 

Geert Wilders, leader of the far-right PVV, is also expressing caution, telling reporters that being asked if he is of a positive mindset is “a complicated question”. No big issues have yet been solved, he said on Wednesday evening. 

Behind the scenes, the paper says, the four party leaders are unable to come to any compromises, even though they have been talking for months. This, the paper said, is why the four had individual meetings with the negotiators last week. 

During those meetings, they were asked to say which issues they were willing to compromise on, out of the hearing of the others. One source said it is proving hard to agree on the main themes. And negotiator Richard van Zwol told reporters this week that “putting together the financial puzzle” is proving tricky. 

The two negotiators have been given until mid-May to come up with a more concrete agreement which should then lead to the formation of an “extra-parliamentary” cabinet, which includes ministers who are experts rather than party members. 

So far, candidate ministers and a possible prime minister have not been the subject of discussions, another source told the paper.

Meanwhile, divisions between the four parties continue to emerge during regular parliamentary business. Earlier this week, the pro-farming BBB found itself abandoned by the NSC and VVD over plans to cut the Dutch manure mountain. 

They are also divided on the future of the public broadcasting system. The PVV wants to abolish it altogether while the NSC wants to get rid of one of the three channels and use the cash to bolster the others. The other two potential partners both want to cut the NPO’s budget.