The Dutch government will probably not have to make extra spending cuts until 2013 or 2014 because the economy is in relatively good shape, finance minister Jan Kees de Jager has told BNR radio.

There has been increasing speculation recently about the need for more cuts, on top of the €18bn already agreed. According to some reports, the coalition government and alliance partner PVV are preparing for talks next spring.
The coalition agreed last year that if the budget deficit is more than one percentage point off target, more cuts will be made.
Last week, new figures showed the economy had contracted in the third quarter. The government’s macro-economic policy unit CPB is due to publish its latest economic forecasts before the end of the year.