(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Most people in the Netherlands do not think their country’s economy will change drastically over the next six months, according to a poll by TNS Nipo released by RTL. 53 per cent of respondents feel this way, while 23 per cent expect an improvement, and 21 per cent believe things will be worse.

Dutch voters renewed the Second Chamber in November 2006. The governing Christian-Democratic Appeal (CDA) of minister president Jan Peter Balkenende secured 41 seats. In February, a coalition encompassing the CDA, the Labour Party (PvdA) of Wouter Bos, and the Christian Union (CU) of Andre Rouvouet was assembled.

On Aug. 15, Balkenende and a group of ministers began discussing the budget for next year. Recent official figures from the Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis (CPB) suggested that Dutch households are in danger of losing an average of at least 0.5 percentage points in purchasing power in 2008, twice as much as estimated earlier this year. Retired seniors and people earning the minimum wage could lose up to one percentage point.

On Aug. 16, Dutch finance minister Bos said that the "spending power of the poor must be protected" and taken into account in discussing the new budget. On Sept. 4, a statement from the Confederation of Netherlands Industry and Employers (VNO-NCW) rejected any increases in taxation, saying, "This is not necessary at all. There is no question of an emergency situation, as was the case in the previous cabinet period."

Polling Data

Do you expect the economic situation to improve, stay the same, or worsen over the next six months?

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