Knowledge sector keen to strengthen defence

The so-called Knowledge Coalition brings together the umbrella organisations representing universities, universities of applied sciences, and vocational education institutions, as well as employers, research institutes, the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) and the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO).

This coalition has developed two pages of ideas in the fields of knowledge and innovation. Parties can use these pages when they form a new government and chart the course for the next few years.

Defence
The current cabinet has consistently defended cuts to the education and research budgets, arguing that billions of euros are needed to strengthen the country's defence. However, the organisations believe that this does not have to be a trade-off.

"The Knowledge Coalition is aware of the need and the agreement to increase investments in defence and resilience," the statement reads. "To this end, investing in knowledge and innovation is an absolute necessity."

Moreover, research is also indispensable for developing new medicines, addressing the debt problem, and facilitating the energy transition. Ultimately, it stimulates the economy, the signatories state.

Criticism from the business community
The parties in the fallen coalition (PVV, VVD, NSC and BBB) have had a hard time dealing with criticism from the business community regarding the budget cuts. When opposition parties accused them of being anti-education and anti-business, they could understand that.

The Knowledge Coalition seems to think: "New round, new opportunities". It is requesting additional funding for science and innovation. The well-known target (3 per cent of the GDP) would require a new investment of two billion euros in 2026, rising to 3.5 billion euros in 2029. It remains to be seen what the political parties think about this. Not all of them want to reverse the budget cuts.