The tax on savings should be reduced and the number of income tax bands cut back from four to two, according to a government commission.

The upper house of parliament on Tuesday voted in favour of new legislation which will increase the age at which teenagers can buy alcohol from 16 to 18.

One in 10 of the Netherlands’ larger firms relocated work overseas between 2009 and 2011, largely to other EU countries, according to new figures from national statistics office CBS.

More young parents leave labour market
There was a slight drop in the number of working parents with young children in the first three months of this year, social affairs minister Lodewijk Asscher told parliament on Tuesday.

CSM to change name to Corbion
Food ingredients group CSM said on Tuesday it is to change its name to Corbion in the ‘latest stage’ of its transformation into a provider of bio-based products.

Fewer holiday jobs for students
Students will find it increasingly difficult to find work for a few weeks during the summer months because of demographic and working practice changes, website nu.nl reports on Tuesday.

Small farms not a good business proposition
Small farmers are finding it increasingly difficult to find someone to take over their farms when they stop work, according to Wageningen University researchers.

School exam theft: 26 pupils admit to cheating
In total, 26 secondary school pupils have taken advantage of an amnesty for cheaters and admitted they saw exam papers stolen from a school in Rotterdam, junior education minister Sander Dekker told parliament on Monday night.

Coalition divided over wind power: report says 'stop building turbines'
The ruling parties VVD and Labour are divided over the future of wind power following the publication of a new report which called for a five-year moratorium on plans to build more wind turbines.

New-born baby boy found abandoned in Roermond street
Police in the Limburg town of Roermond are looking for the mother of a baby boy, found dumped on a grass verge on the Wilhelminalaan.

Wednesday is going to be hot, hot, hot
Weather bureaus are warning of extreme temperatures on Wednesday, as hot air blows into the Netherlands from Spain and North Africa.

Creating mega province around Amsterdam will save €70m: minister
Merging the provinces of Noord-Holland, Utrecht and Flevoland into a single entity will save €70m a year, according to draft legislation published by home affairs minister Ronald Plasterk on Monday.

Scrap the €500 note, says influential foreign policy body
The €500 note should be abolished because it is mainly used in criminal circles, according to the government's influential advisory council on international affairs AIV.

Three more arrested over school exam theft
Three more 18-year-olds have been arrested in connection with the theft of exam papers from a Rotterdam school.

Seven jailed for linesman death: tough sentences merited says court
Six teenagers and a 51-year-old man have been jailed for their role in the death of a football linesman who was kicked by a mob after a youth game in Almere last December.

House sales, new mortgages continue to decline
The number of housing transactions in May was down 18% on a year ago but up 27% on April, according to land registry office Kadaster on Monday.

The Netherlands tried to broker peace between Israel and the Palestinians
The Netherlands spent at least a year trying to broker a breakthrough in the deadlocked peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians, the NRC reports on Monday, quoting confidential sources.

Dutch environment policy is outdated and short-term, says agency
The Netherlands’ environmental policy needs a complete overhaul because it is out of date in many areas, according to the government’s environmental assessment agency PBL.

Forced prostitution shifts to unsold homes in residential areas
Tougher controls on the licenced sex industry are leading to a shift towards home-based prostitution, the acting chief of the Dutch national police force says in Monday’s Volkskrant.

Dutch waste processer AVR in Chinese hands for nearly €1bn
Dutch waste processer and market leader AVR has been bought by a Chinese consortium for €944m.

Dutch pay thousands of euros to 'identify' failed asylum seekers
The Netherlands has paid at least 32 foreign delegations to organise identity papers for asylum seekers who have been refused permission to stay in the Netherlands but cannot be deported because they don't have valid ID.

Protecting activists, gay and women's rights central in Dutch foreign policy
Protecting human rights activists, supporting gay and transgender rights, and supporting women’s rights are to be a cornerstone of Dutch foreign policy, the cabinet agreed on Friday.

Tropical temperatures on their way - for two days
The temperature is expected to reach up to 30 Celsius in the south of the Netherlands on Tuesday and Wednesday, according to the latest weather forecasts.

Schools ban too-short shorts
Girls have been sent home from at least two Dutch schools in recent weeks for wearing too-short skirts and shorts, according to the Volkskrant.

Basic executive pay rates rose an average 6% last year
Despite the crisis, executive pay rates began rising again last year after three years of decline, the Volkskrant reported at the weekend.

Dutch jihadists in Syria: we miss our mothers' cooking most of all
The Volkskrant carried a long email interview on Saturday with someone using the name Abu Fidaa, who claims to be a Dutch jihadist fighting with rebel forces in Syria.