June 29 (Bloomberg) -- The Dutch government collapsed for the third time since 2002 after the smallest of the coalition parties withdrew, calling for Immigration Minister Rita Verdonk to quit after a probe of Ayaan Hirsi Ali's nationality.

The resignation of two D66 ministers and a state secretary ``led to the other ministers and civil servants offering their resignation'' to Dutch Queen Beatrix, Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende told the House of Representatives. Balkenende said he will offer his resignation to the head of state tomorrow and declined to speculate about his government's future.

Balkenende, 50, will tender his cabinet's resignation to the queen for the second time as prime minister. New elections could be held as soon as October, Labor Party leader Wouter Bos said after Balkenende's speech. Balkenende could also stay in power as head of a minority government with the VVD.

Balkenende's Christian Democratic Alliance has 44 seats and the VVD 28 seats in the 150-seat lower house of parliament. They relied on D66's six lawmakers to ensure a majority to pass legislation.

``I'm hoping for quick elections,'' said Bos, in comments broadcast on Dutch television after Balkenende's announcement. He added that he is ``always'' ready for elections.

Labor would become the biggest party with 43 seats, according to a June 23 poll by www.politiekebarometer.nl. CDA representation would fall to 36 seats, with the VVD rising to 34 seats and D66 getting three seats. No details were given of the number of voters questioned or the margin of error.

Lost Confidence

D66 called for Verdonk's resignation in a parliamentary debate last night because of her handling of a probe into former lawmaker Hirsi Ali's nationality. D66 said it had lost confidence in Verdonk, who had the support of her free-market VVD party.

Balkenende's first government collapsed in October 2002 after infighting in the party of slain politician Pim Fortuyn, which formed part of a three-party coalition with the VVD. Fortuyn, who campaigned on a platform of limiting immigration, was shot nine days before the May 2002 election.

A month before that election, Labor Prime Minister Wim Kok's coalition with the VVD and D66 resigned after a report by the Netherlands Institute for War Documentation concluded the Dutch army wasn't prepared for its role in defending refugees in Bosnia from massacre in 1995.

Hirsi Ali

Verdonk, 50, said in May that Hirsi Ali, a VVD politician born in Somalia who led opposition to Islamic fundamentalism, didn't have valid Dutch nationality because she lied on her application for naturalization. Hirsi Ali resigned from parliament and said she would leave the country. Verdonk decided June 27 that Hirsi Ali could keep her Dutch passport after all, because the application identified her sufficiently.

The former lawmaker was born Ayaan Hirsi Magan and applied for Dutch nationality as Hirsi Ali, the name used by her grandfather. Verdonk investigated her application after finding out she had a different name at birth.

Verdonk earlier this year also earned the ire of fellow politicians after she proposed introducing a national language code requiring Dutch to be spoken in public. She later withdrew the idea.

World Cup

She also denied a passport to Ivory Coast-born soccer player Salomon Kalou, making it impossible for him to play on the national team in the World Cup. Johan Cruyff, a former captain of the team, blamed Verdonk for its second-round departure from the tournament.

A parliamentary motion of no-confidence in Verdonk was rejected last night, as 64 lawmakers voted in favor and 79 members opposed it. The motion was supported by D66 and Labor.

Hirsi Ali's campaign against Islamic culture started with the 2002 publication of her book ``The Son Factory.'' That year, the VVD offered her a seat in parliament, and she won election in 2003.

She wrote the movie ``Submission,'' which criticized the treatment of women in Islamic societies. The film was directed by filmmaker Theo Van Gogh, who was stabbed and shot to death in Amsterdam on Nov. 2, 2004, at the age of 47.

Van Gogh's death stoked tensions in the Netherlands, which counts almost 1 million Muslims among its population of 16 million. In the months that followed his killing, at least a dozen mosques were torched or vandalized.

To contact the reporter on this story: Evalinde Eelens in Amsterdam at eeelens@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: June 29, 2006 16:18 EDT