A Dutch poll taken February 7 showed his party in third place behind the Christian Democrats and Labour. Three days later, the Brits banned him from the UK. The latest Dutch poll, taken February 28: Wilders’s party 27, Christian Democrats 26, Labour 21.

Well played, Gordon Brown.

“How happy I am about this. These are of course just polls, but it is an enormous sign of confidence from the Dutch voter,” said Mr Wilders.

“As far as I am concerned, elections can be held tomorrow, then I will be the next premier”.

Polling by Maurice de Hond has predicted that the Freedom Party or PVV would take 18 per cent of the vote to win 27 seats in the 150-seat Dutch parliament.

This would put Mr Wilders in the position of being a power broker and prime minister in a traditionally complicated Dutch multi-party coalition.

Don’t get too excited: As I understand it, the Dutch typically hold parliamentary elections once every four years and the next one’s not scheduled until 2010. Even so, the prospect of one of Islam’s fiercest critics becoming the leader of a western government is heady stuff. It could only happen in a parliamentary system, I suspect; no European majority would vote for a guy like him for president knowing that his victory would attract the attention of every jihadi filthbag in striking distance. In fact, I wonder if the Islamist threat wouldn’t keep Wilders out of power even if his party did take the most seats in the next election. Unless they won a clear majority, which is unlikely, the other parties would feel intense pressure to keep the terrorist bullseye off their backs by forming a coalition among themselves. Exit question: Can you imagine The One having to receive the creator of “Fitna” at the White House?