Government spending cuts
On this page you will find more information about the higher education cutbacks proposed by the cabinet and the professor and student demonstration on 21 January protesting against this proposition.- More information on cutbacks (PDF)
- FAQ for students
- Student demonstration
- Professors demonstration
- Also see the photo and video impressions about the demonstration in The Hague (only in Dutch)
Invitation for professors to sign the digital manifesto
In the letter below Rector Magnificus Gerard Mols invites professors to show their support by signing the VSNU digital manifesto.
Dear colleague,
Last month around 1100 professors went to The Hague to bring the importance of Higher Education into the limelight. It was an impressive meeting and unique demonstration in the history of the Netherlands. However, to continue to draw attention to our concerns about the current government measures, this manifestation alone is not enough. What can you do?
Show your support by signing the digital manifesto
Our objective is to hand the Digital Manifesto, signed by as many professors as possible, to the Prime Minister, Mark Rutte, or the State Secretary of Education, Halbe Zijlstra, before the provincial elections. By doing this we want to, once again, draw attention to our concerns. Therefore, I would like to ask all of you, also those who went to The Hague, to sign the manifesto. So far, 450 colleagues of yours have signed it. We need a large number of signatures to make ourselves heard. You can show your support by signing the manifesto on the VSNU website.
Political developments: pressure is necessary and useful
A lot has happened since January. Recent developments clearly show that it is necessary and useful to continue to express our concerns. At the moment, politics seems to be moving rather quickly. On 1 February a bill proposal to raise tuition fees for students who take too long to complete their studies was submitted to the Cabinet. After strong criticism of the original proposal from the State Council, the State Secretary of Education made a number of technical amendments to the regulation on study delay. The most important amendment regards the fee applied to these students (laangstudeerders) which was reduced from €6000 to €3000. In total, the spending cuts amount to €370 million. To achieve this, the government is cutting back on university spending under the motto “proportional division”. This measure is incompatible with the Cabinet’s reaction to the advice of the Veerman Commission in the Lower Chamber on 8 February.
Veerman’s implementation requires investment
The Cabinet endorses – just like universities have done earlier – the conclusions of the commission. The implementation of Veerman’s advice is a move in the right direction to secure a future-proof higher education and reinforce our knowledge economy. So far, it is good news. However, the Cabinet is not following the Veerman Commission’s observation that the implementation of their advice is not possible without investment. Instead of choosing to make the necessary investment, the government wants to go ahead with its spending cuts plans, before taking the first step to implement Veerman’s advice.
Provincial elections
The Cabinet’s reaction to Veerman’s advice is expected to be discussed in mid March. It is important to, once again, emphasize that the implementation of the Veerman Commission’s advice and the application of spending cuts is an impossible combination. In addition to the effort of making professors, tutors, university staff and students aware of what is at stake during the Provincial Elections on 2 March, handing over a largely signed digital manifesto calls the attention of politicians and Dutch society to this critical issue.
Best wishes,
Gerard Mols
Rector Magnificus
