Public investments have been declining for years, while consumer spending continues to rise. Investing in a strong future earning capacity of the Netherlands is therefore crucial, so that future generations can also benefit from our highly developed social security and healthcare system.

We have the mandate to think not only about the wallets of people today but also about the future earning capacity of the Netherlands. We owe it to future generations to invest now in our future earning capacity and broad prosperity. So that those investments can pay off for future generations just as the investments of previous generations do for us now.

Inge van Dijk

The CDA therefore wants to create room in the national budget for more public investments and stimulate private investments. This requires a different view of the budget rules, where a clear distinction is needed between consumer spending and investment spending that pays for itself. Sharp choices remain necessary to limit rising government spending. Since investments increase the economic capacity of the Netherlands, they can actually strengthen the sustainability of public finances. New choices for a future economy therefore require both reducing spending and raising taxes to continue financing spending, but also adjusting budget rules so that we can invest more.

With the initiative note Room for investing in the future of the Netherlands, Inge Van Dijk from the CDA makes a number of proposals for an economic investment policy.

1. Make investments in earning capacity a more important and explicit part of the budget.
2. Adjust the budget rules so that: large transitions can be pre-financed at the expense of national debt; part of the surpluses from the past year can be used for important investments; the surplus formula is expanded to give investments a place; a long-term norm for the level of government debt makes it possible to look at more long-term investments;
3. Examine a budget system that fits an investment-friendly government, such as a benefit-cost system or a golden financing rule.
4. Stimulate private investments by: one powerful public investment organization, to create leverage on private financing; making the governments revolving investment funds more effective, so that public money used for financing social projects can be better utilized
5. Include a list of public investments with leverage for future economic growth in the annual budget memorandum and distinguish in the budget between: 1) investments, 2) redistribution, 3) public administration, rule of law, and security.
6. Develop appropriate instruments to also estimate the short, medium, and long-term financial benefits of investments.