Dutch don’t trust government and then some

Compared to other countries, the Dutch don’t trust institutions like parliament, the government, the media, justice and large companies. Sounds healthy so far. Sijbren Cnossen, guest researcher at the CPB (Dutch stats office), concludes that the Netherlands, with a tax pressure of 39% of its national income, does better than the continental (42%), Mediterranean (37%) and Anglo-Saxon (34%) countries in Europe. “Poverty is lower, the elderly are better off, there is less discrimination, and healthcare and education is high.”

And then there are things the Netherlands is still bad at, which at a glance seems to mostly affect women and children: major child porverty in one parent families with a parent who does not work (educated guess: about 85% are women), high rate of infant mortality (in short: absent gynaecologists), barely any use of childcare for emancipation (code for ‘women’ and the social stigma of ‘dumping’ your kids) and integration (code for ‘female immigrants’), increasing obesity (like many other places), and the low level of spending for research and development (government wants something for nothing).

(Links: crossroadsmag.eu, cpb.nl, Photo by Quistnix, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 1.0)

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Tags: Dutch government