Dutch government talks to focus on right-wing coalition

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte of the VVD liberal party arrives at parliament in The Hague, Netherlands, March 15, 2017. REUTERS/Michael Kooren

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - Prime Minister Mark Rutte's liberal VVD party should pursue a coalition with the socially conservative but economically progressive ChristenUnie (CU) after talks with other parties collapsed, the official leading discussions said on Monday.

Edith Schippers told journalists in The Hague that the only remaining combination of parties with a majority in parliament was the VVD and CU, plus the Christian Democrats and centrist Democrats 66, which were also part of the earlier negotiations.