LEAVING the European Union would save every Dutch household €9,800 ($ 13,400) a year by 2035, claims Capital Economics, a London consultancy, in a report commissioned by Geert Wilders’ far-right PVV party. Mr Wilders calls this “the best news in years”, painting a picture of a country freed from the chokehold of Brussels, mass migration and high taxes, and enjoying more trade, more jobs and a booming economy.The report lists the benefits of departure, or “Nexit”: lower business costs because of less regulation; no more net payments to the EU; a doubling of the share of trade with emerging markets; faster economic recovery. The only cost is the transition from the euro to a new guilder, and this is “modest and manageable”. The report concludes that Dutch GDP would be 10-13% higher by 2035.This finds a receptive audience among those Dutch who are looking for scapegoats. Unemployment has doubled since 2008 and the economy is flat. A recent poll finds a majority of Dutch voters in favour of leaving the EU if that would lead to more jobs and growth. The PVV is leading in opinion polls before the European elections in May.Yet there are problems with the…
