Netherlands to Cut Spending to Trim Budget Deficit
This article is for subscribers only.
The Dutch caretaker government plans to reduce 2011 spending to help narrow the country’s budget deficit as political leaders haggle over how to form a new coalition Cabinet.
The cuts will help narrow next year’s budget shortfall to 4 percent of gross domestic product from a June forecast by Dutch government planning agency CPB of 4.7 percent, the government said in its 2011 budget. This year’s deficit will be 5.8 percent of GDP, exceeding the European Union’s 3 percent ceiling for the second consecutive year.