Political leaders were given a new issue to get their teeth into on Friday, following allegations that Dutch military intelligence officers had tortured Iraqi prisoners in 2003. But, with four days to go before the general election, the polls still put the ruling Christian Democrats (CDA) far in the lead.

The online internet poll by seasoned opinion pollster, Maurice de Hond, has the CDA on 42 seats – two less than it has in the present parliament. In fact, the party’s position has barely changed since the campaign began.
Labour, with 42 seats in the current parliament, is set to be the biggest loser. De Hond’s poll puts the party – now on 33 seats – just five ahead of the Socialist Party. The SP currently has nine seats.
Support for the Liberals (VVD), junior party in the outgoing coalition, is down from 28 to 21 – meaning the current cabinet is 13 seats short of a majority.
GroenLinks, led by Femke Halsema (pictured), is on six – just one ahead of the PVV which wants a five-year halt on non-western immigration. Both Halsema and SP leader, Jan Marijnissen, have been upping the pressure on Bos to come out in favour of a left-wing coalition.