Employers call for €20bn in cuts

Cuts in government spending totalling €20bn will be enough to get the treasury under control by 2015, not the €29bn recommended by government advisors, the biggest Dutch employers organisation said at the weekend.

Bernard Wientjes, head of the VNO-NCW, said in the Telegraaf the government could easily take steps to boost economic growth, reducing the need for savings.
‘Of course you have to make cuts. But this is also the time for change and innovation,’ he said.
‘If the government brings in subsidies for innovation… and stimulates the granting of building permits, the economy can grow an extra 0.5% a year,’ he told the paper.
At the same time, the government must tackle bureaucracy and continue reforming the economy, Wientjes said.
Within 10 years, the Netherlands must become the distribution hub of Europe. In addition, the country should focus on its current strengths: petrochemicals, plant and soil science and food production.