Housing corporations are threatening to pull out of plans to spend €3bn on urban renewal projects over the next four years unless finance minister Wouter Bos drops plans to impose an extra tax on their income.

The move is the latest twist in a heated dispute on how to improve the 40 run-down neighbourhoods selected by urban affairs minister Ella Vogelaar this spring.
The Volkskrant reports on Friday that Vogelaar threatened to resign in July following a row with Bos over a deal she had reached with the housing corporations earlier this year.
Under this agreement, the corporations – which own most rent-controlled housing in the Netherlands – said they would invest almost €2.5bn on renovating problem areas over a four-year period.
But Bos insists on a €3bn deal and said the spending should be made through traditional ministry channels – which would reduce the budget deficit. The paper says Vogelaar was ‘deeply disappointed’ with the stand taken by Bos and threatened to quit.
A day after the confrontation, Bos announced he will set up a public fund for urban renewal which will fall under ministerial control and is also preparing an extra tax on housing corporation income.