Budget cut consequences: Government cuts 14 per cent of research funding

The Dutch government will spend 1.3 billion euros less on research and development in the coming years, according to the Rathenau Institute. This represents a decline of 14 per cent.

Government expenditure on research and development will decrease from 9.7 billion in 2024 to 8.4 billion in 2029. This is evident from the annual measurement by the Rathenau Institute.

Budget cuts

The decline is entirely linked to the significant cuts to research made by the current government. For instance, there have been substantial reductions to the National Growth Fund. Established in 2020, this fund was intended to invest 20 billion euros in research and innovation. However, the fund was already put on hold by the previous government, and the new cabinet allocated 6.8 billion euros from the fund to a different purpose.

Meanwhile, significant cuts are being made to research at universities and university medical centres, where, for example, starter grants intended for early-career researchers have been abolished.

In the past, the Netherlands provided relatively much tax support to innovative companies compared to other countries, but now other countries are overtaking the Netherlands. In particular, the United Kingdom, Belgium, and Austria have become more generous with tax benefits.

Succesful in European funding

The Rathenau Institute observes that the Netherlands excels in attracting European funding for research and development. A substantial 9 per cent of the Horizon Europe science fund goes to the Netherlands – amounting to approximately 3.7 billion euros since 2021. Only France, Germany, and Spain receive more.

In 21.4 per cent of applications for European grants, the Netherlands is successful. Among all EU countries, this percentage is only higher in Belgium. Rathenau notes that it is ‘striking that Dutch researchers are increasingly securing more funding from European sources, both in absolute and relative terms’.