Education minister Marja van Bijsterveldt has allocated €70m this year to help improve pre-school language skills and will increase that to €95m in 2013.

The money will be spent on improving personnel quality, expanding pre-school education and on summer schools, the minister has agreed with the country’s 37 biggest local councils.
‘This money will be earned back in the long-term,’ the minister said in a statement. ‘By improving language standards, these youngsters will be better positioned on the jobs market.’