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THE HAGUE， March 7 (Xinhua) -- Members of the Dutch ruling party VVD (Liberals) have expressed their annoyance in two newspapers on Tuesday about the campaign of party leader Mark Rutte with forthcoming Dutch elections drawing near.


Although the VVD heads the latest polls and might become the largest party again， the latest polls suggested that the liberals could lose at least 10 seats in House of Representatives compared to the last elections in 2012.


Five years ago the VVD became the largest party with 41 seats， but according to the latest poll by Peilingwijzer， which combines several polls， the VVD will secure 23 to 27 seats.


The right-wing populist Party for Freedom (PVV) has dropped in the polls in recent months and are on 21 to 25 seats now.


VVD members accused Rutte in De Telegraaf and Het Algemeen Dagblad of being unconvincing in the campaign， but also that the VVD campaign tactic failed.


"Plan A was not solid， but there is no Plan B，" a VVD member of the parliament told Het Algemeen Dagblad. Plan A was a battle between the VVD and the PVV， with the VVD in the end hoping for strategic votes on the party by normally non-VVD voters to avoid the PVV becoming the largest party.


"But the PVV will not govern at all，" said former Christian Democrats CDA strategist Jack de Vries in De Telegraaf. "All parties have excluded Geert Wilders. So there is no reason to vote strategically for the VVD by non VVD voters to keep Wilders from becoming the Prime Minister."


"Actually， everyone at the VVD is dissatisfied with the campaign，" a "VVD insider" told De Telegraaf. "Wilders makes no substantive point where we can argue against and does not come to debates. It's like shadow boxing. The person you want to fight， is not there."


"It doesn't look like Wilders will be as big as everyone thought， so this strategy does not look good，" says another "prominent VVD member" in Het Algemeen Dagblad. An "experienced VVD campaigner" added: "Because a conflict with Wilders does not come off the ground， it becomes a three-men fight on the right wing with the CDA."


The Christian Democrats CDA have moved forward slightly in the latest polls and are the third party with 18 to 20 seats now according to Peilingwijzer. But the request of CDA leader Sybrand Buma to participate in the debate scheduled between Rutte and Wilders at the Erasmus University in Rotterdam next Monday was rejected.


Rutte also saw no reason to add Buma to the debate. The prime minister avoids confrontation with the CDA， because he still seems willing to continue with the two-party battle tactic with the PVV. On Monday， just two days ahead of the March 15 Dutch general election， he gets his chance to present himself in the first debate with Wilders in this election campaign.


A U.S. judge on Tuesday approved one of the biggest corporate settlements on record Nike Air Max Deluxe Womens UK , Volkswagen AG's (VOWG_p.DE) $14.7 billion deal arising from its diesel emissions cheating scandal, and the German automaker said it would begin buying back polluting cars in mid-November.


U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer in San Francisco signed off on VW's settlement with federal and California regulators and the owners of the 475,000 polluting diesel vehicles in a pivotal moment for the world's No. 2 automaker as it tries to move past a scandal that has engulfed it for more than a year.


VW admitted in September 2015 to installing secret software in its diesel cars to cheat exhaust emissions tests and make them appear cleaner in testing than they really were. In reality, the vehicles emitted up to 40 times the legally allowable pollution levels.


Volkswagen CEO Matthias Mueller told reporters in Berlin that Breyer's approval was "an important milestone for us on the way towards clearing up the problem that we caused some time ago." Hinrich Woebcken, president and CEO of Volkswagen Group of America, pledged to carry out the terms "as seamlessly as possible."


Breyer turned away objections from car owners who thought the settlement did not provide enough money, saying it "adequately and fairly compensates" them. Owners will get the pre-scandal "trade in" value of the vehicle and $5,100 to $10,000 in additional compensation.


"Given the risks of prolonged litigation, the immediate settlement of this matter is far preferable," Breyer wrote.


Volkswagen agreed to spend up to $10.033 billion on the buybacks and owner compensation and $4.7 billion on programs to offset excess emissions and boost clean-vehicle projects.


The settlement was reached with the U.S. Justice Department, Federal Trade Commission, the state of California and vehicle owners who had filed a class action lawsuit against VW. Volkswagen has admitted to misleading regulators and still faces an ongoing criminal investigation.


It represented the largest civil settlement worldwide ever reached with an automaker accused of misconduct.


While huge, the approved deal was still smaller than the $246 billion settlement reached by cigarette makers with 46 U.S. states in 1998 and the $53 billion by BP to address costs and penalties arising from the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill.


In total, Volkswagen has agreed to date to spend up to $16.5 billion in connection with the scandal, including payments to dealers, states and attorneys for owners. The scandal rattled VW's global business, harmed its reputation and prompted the ouster of its CEO.


The settlement covers 2.0-liter polluting diesel Beetle, Golf, Jetta, Passat and Audi A3 cars from the 2009 through 2015 model years. Up to 490,000 people will take part in the settlement because some vehicles had multiple owners.


Volkswagen spokeswoman Jeannine Ginivan said the automaker expects to begin buying back vehicles in mid-November. VW has hired 900 people, including one to be stationed at each dealership, to handle buybacks.<.