Austerity measures too vague to assess financial impact: CPB

The financial impact of spending plans agreed last week by the minority coalition and three other parties is impossible to calculate because the measures are too vague, the NRC reported on Wednesday.


The paper says officials from the macro-economic forecasting agency CPB and the finance ministry have confirmed the effect of the measures on the budget deficit cannot be properly assessed.
The five-party coalition hopes the austerity package, which includes a rise in value-added tax, will cut the budget deficit to below the 3% limit set down in monetary union regulations.
Health cuts
The CPB says it is also unclear what the affect of the tax increases will be on spending power and employment levels.
In particular, the five parties still have to flesh out how they plan to realise a €1.6bn reduction in spending on healthcare and a general €875m cut in the budget, the paper said.
Finance minister Jan Kees de Jager insisted last week the measures would cut the budget deficit to below 3%.
Representatives of the five parties will meet over the coming weeks to fine-tune their plans.

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