Population ageing will reduce economic growth and increase the amount of resources that need to be transferred to the elderly, putting pressure on retirement-income- and healthcare insurance systems. The Netherlands is better placed than most OECD countries to meet these pressures because it has a large, funded occupational pension system in place. This advantage will be reinforced if the government adopts the policy that it is considering of pre-funding ageing-related budget outlays, which would entail paying off government debt over the next quarter century. Increasing labour force participation, notably for older persons would also attenuate the economic pressures associated with population ageing. In this regard, it will be important to reduce incentives for economic inactivity, especially by reforming early retirement schemes and disability insurance. Finally, raising productivity growth could also help ease these pressures by facilitating a de-coupling of government ...
