NSC proposes €18 minimum wage and healthcare reform in new election program

The Nieuw Sociaal Contract (NSC) party is calling for a minimum wage of 18 euros per hour and reforms to the healthcare deductible in its new election program, officials announced Saturday.

Under the proposal, patients would pay a maximum of 80 euros per treatment, while the legally mandated annual deductible remains 385 euros. NSC emphasizes that the deductible should not block access to care, stating its goal is to prevent “that one treatment from immediately consuming the entire deductible.”

The program, led by Eddy van Hijum, is titled “Ensuring Security” and expands the party’s focus beyond purchasing power, which was a central theme in its previous election program. Unlike before, NSC now sets a specific target for the minimum hourly wage.

NSC also addresses national defense and housing. The party supports meeting the new NATO guideline of spending 3.5 percent of GDP on defense but adds that “the financial security of people must never be jeopardized.” Funding sources for this increase are not detailed. NSC proposes cutting costs on civil servants by reducing the use of external contractors, consistent with its previous platform.

To accelerate housing construction, NSC suggests a 2 billion euros fund and reducing transfer taxes for homebuyers. The party supports maintaining mortgage interest deduction. Social sector rents would only rise with inflation, while private sector rents could increase by an additional 1 percent.

On migration, NSC maintains a cap of 50,000 people per year, including a maximum of 40,000 labor migrants. It seeks to discourage companies from bringing workers to the Netherlands by eliminating the ability to withhold part of wages for housing and introducing an employer levy for foreign employees.