Dutch jobless figures at six-year high

NEW FIGURES showing 24,000 people lost their jobs in the Netherlands during April alone have added fuel to the debate here over austerity versus growth – and prompted the opposition Labour Party to propose a left-wing coalition with the Socialists after the September election.

The figures show unemployment has hit a six-year high of 6.2 per cent, bringing the jobless total to 489,000 – the worst possible news for caretaker prime minister Mark Rutte and his Liberal-Christian Democrat coalition, which fell last month while attempting to agree budget cuts.

The government’s case wasn’t helped by trenchant analysis yesterday from the independent Central Planning Bureau (CPB), which revealed that worst hit were education and the public sector, where 27,000 people lost their jobs in the first three months of this year.

“The government has given unemployment a nudge in the wrong direction,” the CPB said. “People are not more likely to lose their jobs than they used to be, but if you do lose your job, you’re less likely to find a new one.”

There was bad news too from the National Statistics Office, with latest figures showing consumer confidence continuing the downward trajectory it began mid-2011. In March, consumer spending fell by 2.1 per cent – with spending on food, unusually, down 2.9 per cent.

The €13 billion austerity package agreed by the two government parties, with the support of the Greens, centre-left D66 and Christian Unity, was finally presented to parliament yesterday and received a mixed public reaction.

The likelihood of a backlash at the polls on September 12th has prompted opposition Labour leader Diederik Samsom to propose a coalition with the Socialists after the election – though they would need the support of a third party for a working majority.