Shock for Europe as far-right populist Wilders set to win in Netherlands

Geert Wilders, leader of the Party for Freedom, is heading for election victory (AP)

Anti-Islam populist Geert Wilders has won a huge victory in the Dutch elections, according to a near complete count of the vote, in a stunning lurch to the far-right for a nation once famed as a beacon of tolerance.

The result will send shockwaves throughout Europe, where far-right ideology is on the rise, and puts Mr Wilders in line to lead talks to form the next governing coalition and possibly become the first far-right prime minister of the Netherlands.