Pension reform has MP's divided, but majority support likely

After dozens of hours of debate, the Tweede Kamer is still deeply divided about the pension law. Though it seems that responsible Minister Carola Schouten will get enough support. The coalition parties are optimistic about the reform. And PvdA and GroenLinks are leaning towards supporting the law, though they still have some requirements.

The law is the legal basis for the “unprecedented and irreversible reform” of the pension system, as PVV parliamentarian Leon de Jong described it. The opposition is particularly concerned about the redistribution of 1,500 billion euros in pension money from a collective pot to individual pots. Politicians also fear that the switch to the new system will spark large numbers of lawsuits.

In addition, compensation must be provided for people affected by the system's transition, which makes pension accrual age-dependent. There are also serious concerns about the consequences for the implementation of pensions. Millions of employees will have to move to a new system in less than four years. Neither the Cabinet nor the Tweede Kamer, the lower house of the Duch parliament, know what the consequences will be.

However, proponents emphasize that the old system, which is much less flexible, is not sustainable with the aging population. During previous discussions of the law, Minister Schouten emphasized that it stems from a widely supported pension agreement. The Minister highlighted the many “tests and advice, and the advice of the Council of State” about the new law.

For a majority in both the Tweede Kamer and Eerste Kamer, the Dutch Senate, Schouten needs support from at least the PvdA and GroenLinks. These parties will present amendment proposals to the law and, above all, want enough to be done to drastically reduce the number of workers who do not build up a pension. A letter in which employers’ organizations and trade unions make proposals for more guarantees in the approach to this may offer solace. For example, these social partners are open to an obligation to build up a pension.

The two left-wing opposition parties, which are working together, also want the starting age for pension accrual to be lowered to 18 and the waiting period for accruing pension in the temporary employment sector to be abolished. Without those amendments, “the law is incomplete,” according to GroenLinks MP Senna Maatoug.

The Tweede Kamer debated the law well into the night from Wednesday to Thursday. Schouten has yet to respond to the Kamer’s proposals. The Kamer will vote on the law later, though it's not yet clear when. Part of the opposition first wants to see the results of a study into various scenarios. It is set to come into effect on July 1.