Government wants more grip on state firms

Finance minister Wouter Bos wants to amend the statutes of some state-owned companies to increase government control of their strategy, investments, pay policy and assets, the Financieele Dagblad reports on Friday.


For example, Bos is examining whether the structure of the national grid operator Tennet and the Dutch mint can be altered to give his officials more say, the paper states.
But the plan will not affect recently nationalised ABN Amro and Fortis Nederland because they are only temporarily in state hands, Bos said in a note to parliament.
In particular, Bos wants to stimulate state-owned firms to become more active in sustainable enterprise, the FD says.
The Dutch state has interests in a wide range of companies, from the national railway operator NS to Holland Casino and Schiphol airport.

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