In a press conference on Thursday, Prime Minister Mark Rutte told the Dutch media that the public should be prepared to face higher taxes, and that companies in the Netherlands should do what they can to ensure their workers are paid more.
The coronavirus pandemic and ongoing war in Ukraine mean the cost of living in the Netherlands continues to increase, as inflation reaches record levels and the prices of various goods and services rise. The Netherlands is still recovering from the pandemic while at the same time facing an energy crisis, a serious housing shortage, a war in Europe and an influx of refugees - issues Rutte says the Dutch government cannot tackle without increasing taxes.
"Just assume that the next budget will include tax increases,” the Prime Minister told reporters in The Hague on Thursday afternoon during his weekly press conference. "The very big problems we now face are impossible to solve with spending alone." But what does this mean for Dutch citizens and residents?
NOS reports that the government will increase taxes for companies and the wealthy by adjusting the corporate income tax, the transfer tax on second homes, and the assets that fall under Box 2 in a Dutch tax return. According to Rutte, wealth inequality is a serious problem in the Netherlands: “Could you tax your assets more and give that back to lower-income earners? As a general movement, I think that is an attractive idea."
The cabinet parties are currently meeting to discuss the Spring Memorandum (Voorjaarsnota), which provides an overview of the current budget and the government’s finances, and must be presented to the House of Representatives (Tweede Kamer) before the summer. The Prime Minister was asked to provide an update on these conversations during his most recent weekly press conference.
Rutte also told the press on Thursday that he felt Dutch and international companies in the Netherlands should do what they can to increase the salaries of employees, as many businesses are thriving: “I think it's the job of a decent employer to pass [profits] on via wage increases.”
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