What is the future perspective of the welfare state in the Netherlands? And what is needed to realise it? The political discussion falls short of the public interest we derive from preserving core functions of the welfare state, says Prof Dr Arthur van Riel. Van Riel will accept his endowed chair of ‘Historical Political Economy’ at Erasmus University Rotterdam on Friday 24 January with his inaugural lecture ‘The welfare state as expectation pattern’.
Clear choices are necessary
For more than 40 years, Dutch politicians have debated the future of the welfare state. The focus is on its supposed erosion and the need for more efficiency to ensure sustainability.
In his lecture, Arthur van Riel argues that this debate ignores the unique post-war economic and demographic conditions that shaped the welfare state. He stresses that structural changes in these conditions and competing budgetary demands, such as those from security and climate, require clear choices. If these are not forthcoming, the welfare state risks crowding out core government functions, damaging welfare growth and losing its relevance. Especially for those people for whom it is primarily designed.
Outdated assumptions
The welfare state in absolute terms has by no means been stripped, but the distribution of spending (sharp rise in healthcare costs) has changed dramatically. This raises the question of what is actually the problem. According to Van Riel, it is the economic-historical context. In the case of the welfare state, this has gradually but nevertheless fundamentally changed since the 1970s. As a result, the expectation of continuous growth in claims on that welfare state is based on outdated assumptions.
Van Riel argues this on the basis of five aspects: lack of constant arrangements of the sustainability sums, structurally declining welfare growth, demographic developments (population growth, ageing, working population), the accumulation of fiscal desires and broader policy goals (from security to climate) and the effects of a further increase in the tax burden. Van Riel calls for choices based on a substantive debate on the future of the welfare state.
The importance of Historical Political Economy
The endowed chair in Historical Political Economy (HPE) studies how economic and political actors influence economic outcomes and public decision-making over time. HPE is important both academically and for its role in shaping strategic policy advice. Although HPE is now an established field internationally, Dutch academic contributions have lagged behind. This chair addresses that gap and, through its links with the Wetenschappelijke Raad (WRR - Netherland Scientific Council for Government Policy), bridges the gap between academia and policy advice.
Research and teaching
With his appointment, Van Riel focuses on research and teaching. His research interests include the economic history of the Netherlands since the 1980s and the influence of globalisation on past and present political coalitions. In the field of academic education, Van Riel's course ‘Reasoning from the past: applied history and welfare policies’ deals with applied history from a viewpoint that considers political-economic history as a basis for decision-making. For example, it combines historiographical insights with the basic principles of development theory and political economy and examines how these can play a role in current policy debates.
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