Pressure is mounting on Christian Democrat leader Maxime Verhagen to join talks on forming a new coalition government with the VVD Liberals and anti-Islam PVV, despite the party’s poor showing in the June 9 general election, the Volkskrant writes on Friday.

VVD leader Mark Rutte, the PVV’s Geert Wilders and Labour leader Job Cohen all advised new cabinet negotiator Ruud Lubbers to focus on a right-wing cabinet in their meetings yesterday.
And on Friday morning, Lubbers said he wanted the the VVD, PVV and CDA leaders to sit down and talk about some form of ‘alliance’ between them.
Unclear
It is not yet clear what Verhagen, who told Lubbers he backed a VVD CDA Labour coalition, will now do.
When the right-wing option was first looked at in early June, Verhagen refused to join in. He said Rutte and Wilders first had to agree on a number of controversial subjects, such as Wilders call for a tax on Muslim headscarves, ethnic registration and a ban on the Koran.
After his meeting, Wilders said the party very much wanted to be a part of the cabinet. If necessary he would support a minority cabinet between the CDA and VVD, he said.
Commentators say by asking the leaders to look at an alliance that a minority cabinet could be among the options.
Many senior CDA members are opposed to an actual coalition with the PVV and earlier this week the party chairman called on Cohen to give up his opposition to a right-centre-left coalition between the CDA, VVD and Labour.
Cohen opposes that because it would involve two parties which lost seats. The PvdA lost 3, the CDA 20.