Politics · Netherlands · 8 hrs ago
Dutch civil service cuts hit three ministries hardest
The Dutch government plans to cut €3.4 billion from the civil service, which has grown to about 160,000 full-time jobs.
Personnel budgets are set to shrink by nearly 30% at the education and economic affairs ministries, and by 36% at the interior ministry.
The original plan was for ministries to make cuts in proportion to their spending on staff, but some public services are exempt, including defence, police, courts and prisons.
Those exemptions leave other ministries and public bodies with more of the savings to find.
The economic affairs ministry says its larger cut is partly due to an earlier calculation that included budgets for services meant to be exempt; its staffing costs are also affected by the climate fund ending in 2030.
Efficiency savings alone are unlikely to be enough: the Netherlands Court of Audit has warned that the government must make difficult choices, while the planning bureau estimated that efficiency improvements could save at most €200 million.
The government’s detailed plan is due by the end of October, when State Secretary Eric van der Burg is expected to present it to parliament.
The civil-service budget at three Dutch ministries is set to fall by nearly 30% or more, according to an NRC analysis of government budgets.
The Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations faces the largest cut, with its budget falling by 36%.
The budgets at the ministries of Education, Culture and Science and Economic Affairs and Climate are each set to fall by nearly 30%.
The government plans to cut €3.4 billion from the civil service, which has grown to about 160,000 full-time equivalent jobs.
The precise plan is due to be presented to the House of Representatives by State Secretary Eric van der Burg at the end of the month.
- Who
- The Dutch government and civil servants at the ministries of Education, Culture and Science, Economic Affairs and Climate, and the Interior and Kingdom Relations.
- What
- Civil-service budget cuts are expected to hit these three ministries hardest.
- When
- The article was published on 19 October 2026. The government’s detailed plan is due at the end of the month.
- Where
- The Netherlands, across the three named ministries.
- Why
- The government plans to save €3.4 billion on the civil service. Exemptions for some areas mean other ministries and public bodies face larger cuts.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
D66, VVD and CDA agreed in coalition negotiations that cuts should be proportionate to spending on civil servants.
Government budgets were sent to the House of Representatives and used by NRC to calculate the expected cuts.
NRC published its analysis of the budget reductions at the three ministries.
State Secretary Eric van der Burg is due to present the government’s civil-service savings plan to the House of Representatives.
- Government savings target
- €3.4 billion
- Civil service size
- About 160,000 full-time equivalent jobs
- Interior and Kingdom Relations budget cut
- 36%
- Education, Culture and Science budget cut
- Nearly 30%
- Economic Affairs and Climate budget cut
- Nearly 30%
What people are saying
Given the accumulation of spending targets, substantive choices must be made about adapting, postponing, reducing or scrapping tasks and activities.
These kinds of choices cannot be made without political consideration in the House of Representatives.