Netherlands PM Mark Rutte tells Parliament Brexit is a ‘terrible idea’
OTTAWA — Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau expressed shared concern Thursday over the current fate of the international order that both their countries help to create after the carnage of the Second World War.
The theme developed over Rutte’s one-day visit and was laid plain in his morning speech to Parliament where he said Canada and the Netherlands have a special role to play after Brexit.
Rutte told the House of Commons that Britain’s decision to leave the European Union is a terrible idea, adding that he imagines many Canadians feel the same. In his address he also invoked the strong bonds between the two countries forged during the Second World War.
“In Europe, we now face the great unknown of Brexit. Let me be totally honest, I still think it’s a terrible idea,” Rutte said in his speech, as Trudeau looked on.