Netherlands

A 24 million euros cut to national parks budget is raising concerns about the future of nature education, volunteer programs and local economies; the plan end government funding for IVN Nature Education across 20 of the country’s 21 national parks

The Dutch National Theater will use new technology LiveText to improve accessibility for non-Dutch speakers or hearing impaired: the theater plans to introduce smart glasses that display real-time subtitles in 223 languages during performances

A total of 3.427 people have received royal honours in this year’s lintjesregen, birthday of king Willem-Alexander; the royal family celebrated King’s Day in Doetinchem on Saturday, a day earlier than normal, among thousands of well-wishers

National park Hoge Veluwe has been refused permission to chase or shoot roaming wolves, which it says are decimating the mouflon sheep population; provincial authorities said the privately owned park will have to abide by the rules and not take any action

The introduction of the 'lump sum' pension withdrawal option, initially planned for 1 July 2024, will be postponed until July 2026; the measure would allow pensioners to withdraw up to 10% of their pension savings in an una tantum lump sum

Foreign workers and freelancers involved in a conflict with their employer over pay can now take their case to court in a three-year trial of four courts in the country, The Hague, Rotterdam, Overijssel and Zeeland-West-Brabant

119 Benin bronzes stolen by British forces in 1897 and later acquired by Dutch institutions will be returned to Nigeria; one of the largest repatriations of looted artifacts to date, it shows momentum for restitution efforts continues to grow worldwide

An agreement among the government, energy companies and network operators has been reached: an emergency fund will be extended to help low-income households struggling with high energy bills

A gay couple of two fertile partners cannot deduct assisted fertilisation treatments from their taxes, Court of Cassation has ruled, but costs are deductible for heterosexual couples who can't conceive after 12 months of unprotected sexual intercourse

The increase in wages resulted in over €616 billion savings in 2024, an increase of €24,2 billion over the previous year, Nederlandsche Bank reported

The number of bankruptcies increased in 2024 compared to the previous year: according to Statistics Netherlands, almost 4.300 companies were declared bankrupt last year, an increase of 30% compared to 2023

Traffic congestion in the Netherlands increased by 8% last year, according to new data from the ANWB motoring organisation, based on information from TomTom satellite navigation systems