Dutch budget deficit to exceed EU norm next year: Finance Min

The Dutch budget deficit next year will be just above the 3 percent standard that the European countries have agreed upon with each other, reports outgoing Minister Sigrid Kaag (Finance). That is because parliament increased government expenditure by 1.5 billion euros last week by adopting multiple amendments (small adjustments to bills) and motions.

Due to the additional expenditure, the budget deficit in 2024 will likely amount to 3.1 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), while the government previously assumed 2.9 percent. The changes proposed by the Tweede Kamer, the lower house of the Dutch parliament, will have little effect on the budgets in the years that follow. In 2025, the deficit will fall to 3 percent before rising to 3.6 percent in 2026, as previously estimated.

In her calculations, Minister Kaag only looked at the motions and amendments for which the costs are known. For example, she disregarded a motion in which Pieter Omtzigt, GroenLinks-PvdA, and ChristenUnie requested a freeze on interest rates for students who had borrowed money under the loan system. The government is still considering whether and how to respond to this call from parliament.