Budget note: We put together the cultural haircut percentages

Let's start again with yet another sloppiness by the cabinet Rutte: that wretched VAT measure on the arts, which are the only ones to be bounced to the 'normal' rate of 19%. VVD doesn't like it, CDA is not happy about it, but as tolerance specialist Martin Bosma once had to play a red mushroom in the school play, he has sworn eternal revenge on art. Hence that 19% measure. But so the million note still said that a low VAT rate was good: for journalism, for sports, for art. We have and image of the accidentally unremoved text:

But that Bosma's Toneel Wee measure is therefore going to be reviewed at some point, because they already know that it will yield less than Rutte hoped. Some 20% less. Once again, we have a quote from page 182:

"In private consumption, the composition of consumption also plays a role, as there are different spending categories that are subject to different VAT rates. For example, when the economy is down, it is not an unusual phenomenon that there is a shift from consumption subject to a higher rate ("luxury goods") to consumption subject to a low VAT rate. As a result, the average VAT rate on total private consumption decreases and with it VAT receipts."

Giving Act

What is new, however, is the Giving Act. The art world may try to recover the millions just looted by VVD, CDA and PVV from wealthy private individuals, who from now on will be allowed to deduct more donations to culture. The requirements for ANBI (Algemeen Nut Beogende Instelling) status will be slightly relaxed, allowing such an institution to do commercial activities as well.

The figures

We suggest you looking at the figures and crying along. Because what becomes clear: in total, you can indeed see that there is a substantial reduction in OCW's budget coming, but in that same total, it is actually a bit less than that. The ministry's liabilities are falling from 1.1 billion in 2010 to 930 million in 2016. that's not even a hundred million less, or a generous 17%. Comes from new investments on heritage. And those are still apart from the 150 million the government has set aside for so-called friction funds that are only set aside for 2013 and 2014: damages and the like. Which we think 150 million is a very optimistic estimate.

Enfin: so the ministry's total expenditure is down by 25%. They hope. Those go from 991 million to 739 million, so that's 250 million less. Now we come to the arts. Which, according to Bosma cs hobby of the left-wing governments who thereby sustain artists who are nothing more than propaganda tools in the hands of rogue multicultis who want to destroy the Dutch people. So those arts have to submit almost 30%. All think tanks, where thus according to the same alum theory by Bosma who are forging nefarious plans to Arabise Dutch society, are counted among non-producing institutions. These will be virtually wiped off the map. We already knew, but a cut of 84 to 100% suddenly looks very concrete.

Are there winners? Certainly there are winners. Almost seventy per cent more goes to the 'broadening commitment culture' project. Whatever that may be. Gets at least 11 million more. In the arts corner, the non-producing institutions get more than .double that amount for a long time: 133% for saving Bosma's next conspiracy theory well.

Other winners are mainly at the Cultural Heritage, which focuses on preserving everything made before the invention of 'left' and 'right'. The rates of increase fly around your ears there, topping the 5890 million per cent increase for long-term subsidies. Going to dive in for a while.

Source: Budget Arts OCW , Budget statement