‘The greatest threat to capitalism are the capitalists themselves’

According to Jacobs, the Netherlands is certainly a capitalistic country. ‘There is large amount of private capital and the wages for executed labour are high. In that respect, the Netherlands is classically capitalist. However, we do have a large social safety net and in that respect resemble Scandinavian countries. The Netherlands is social-capitalistic, you might say.’

Both Jacobs and Van de Haar see advantages in capitalism. ‘Capitalism has the great strength that it leads to innovation and more prosperity,’ says Jacobs.

There are, however, also major drawbacks to the success story of capitalism. According to Jacobs, capitalism is in danger of being eroded from within. ‘The greatest threat to capitalism are the capitalists themselves. Large entrepreneurs who shift the risk that belongs to capitalism to their employees. Bankers who do not take responsibility, but only grab.’

‘The problem of tax evasion,’ Jacobs continues. ‘Noblesse oblige for these companies, I would say. And big tech companies that are in danger of becoming monopolists with too little supervision. If Europe fined a company like Facebook, Trump would be standing angry on the doorstep. I am very concerned about that. Citizens – whether they are right or wrong – no longer accept that.’ That does not mean, however, that capitalism has shown signs of failure and needs to be saved, according to Van de Haar.

And Politicians? They should not be so ugly about capitalism. Jacobs finds that many policitians – especially from GroenLinks and the PvdA – put capitalism in a bad light. ‘An entrepreneur or a company that makes a profit is quickly seen as a greedy grabber. I do not really understand the anger towards companies. You should not throw the baby out with the bathwater.’