THE HAGUE, 14/01/03 - Labour (PvdA) continues to refuse to reveal who it will put forward as Prime Minister if it emerges the largest party from the 22 January general election. In addition, PvdA leader Wouter Bos has instructed all prospective PvdA MPs to keep their mouths shut about the distribution of cabinet posts.

Bos requested party members by e-mail on Saturday not to make any statements about their personal ambitions or those of their colleagues, a PvdA spokeswoman confirmed yesterday. She added that Bos did not have the candidate MPs "on a string," but assumed they would comply with his request.

In a TV debate with the frontrunners of five other parties last Sunday, Bos stated that he could not yet say whether he would reveal the name of the PvdA's possible Prime Minister before 22 January. Bos himself is not available for the job. He wishes to remain parliamentary leader in the Lower House.

Pim Fortuyn List (LPF) leader Mat Herben maintained in the TV debate that voters were entitled to know that "they would not end up with Ad Melkert (former PvdA parliamentary leader) or Klaas de Vries (former Home Affairs Minister) as premier. " Afterwards, Bos only said it was not his intention that members of the cabinet led by former PvdA Prime Minister Wim Kok should return to the government "in large numbers". As far as he was concerned, "the same team would not take up office again".

The Christian democrats (CDA) were not impressed yesterday by Bos' statements. CDA parliamentary leader Maxime Verhagen insisted during a press meeting that, if the PvdA came to power, it should not put forward ministers and state secretaries from the 'purple' Kok cabinet, which was rejected mercilessly by the voters at the last election on 15 May. Verhagen declared he would not call a veto on the PvdA choices but that "we do not want purple solutions after 22 January. " He called it strange that Bos was unable to give an answer concerning a possible PvdA Prime Minister.

Verhagen repeated that he had a preference for a cabinet with the conservatives (VVD). "We can reach agreement easily with the VVD, while a formation with the PvdA would involve months of quarrelling. " The PvdA course relating to healthcare, education and integration is unclear, Verhagen claimed. "The PvdA is not ready for solving problems. "