New coalition in The Netherlands brings clear break with past economic policies
– An objective assessment of the plans is not yet available.
– The coalition wants to increase public spending in the short term, especially in 2025.
– Over a longer time horizon, spending will decrease somewhat.
– The targeted government deficit of 2.8% of GDP increases the likelihood of not remaining within the European 3% deficit norms.
– Budget cuts such as scrapping civil servants and reducing EU contributions seem unrealistic.
– Ad-hoc cuts to budgets may be made on a pro-rata basis if necessary.
– This could lead to political tensions and policy uncertainty.