“No movement” in cabinet talks amid left-right stalemate

The cabinet’s attempt to win over left- and right-wing opposition parties in its ongoing tax plan talks failed again on Friday.

Prime minister Rob Jetten and other senior ministers met opposition leaders a day after three right-wing parties, the far-right JA21, orthodox Protestant SGP and farmer-citizen movement BBB, banded together to push their demands as a single bloc. The demands range from harsher asylum measures and changes to abortion rules to scrapping a tax rise to pay for defence.

The move was the latest attempt by the opposition to force the cabinet to pick a side. Opposition parties have said for weeks that the cabinet will never get a broad agreement, because the two sides of the aisle have incompatible demands.

The offer presented on Friday covered how to pay for changes to box 3, the tax on savings and investments, without raising taxes on wealth, sources told the Telegraaf.

The cabinet would use money left over from a fund to refund people who were overtaxed under box 3 in past years, and cut taxes for business owners who pay themselves profits from their own companies. It would also keep a tax deduction for healthcare costs that was due to be scrapped in 2028.

Regardless of the offer, the stalemate appears to continue. Centre-left PRO leader Jesse Klaver said he saw “no movement at all” on his party’s demand for higher taxes on the wealthy and lower taxes on workers.

JA21 leader Joost Eerdmans called it “a tough, complicated conversation”, but said the new right-wing alliance remained intact.

The coalition of D66, VVD and CDA does not have a majority, so it needs support from opposition parties to get its tax plan through parliament.