The ruling coalition parties and alliance partner PVV have thrown their weight behind plans to drastically reduce spending on personal care plans for the elderly and people with handicaps.

During a tense debate on Thursday evening, it emerged junior health minister Marlies Veldhuijzen van Zanten can count a majority of at least one for her reforms, which she says will save €900m a year.
Currently, some 130,000 people get government grants to choose their own care services, in many cases which allow them to live at home rather than in an institution.
Fewer claims
The government plans to stop all but 13,000 people from making claims under the pgb system. Instead, people will have to ask their local council, healthcare insurer, friends and family for help.
Opposition MPs from across the political spectrum are opposed to the changes, saying they will hit some of the most vulnerable people in society.
In addition, they want the minister to explain how the changes will generate savings because institutional care is more expensive than the pgb system.
Before the debate, the minister was loudly booed when she addressed a crowd of several hundred people who had come to The Hague to protest about the plans.

Earlier stories
Cabinet agrees to slash spending on personal care