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Dutch Liberal and Labour parties agree to coalitionReuters THE HAGUE--Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte's Liberal Party and the Labour Party have agreed a coalition deal, the parties said on Monday, paving the way for a pro-austerity, pro-European government to be sworn in as early as next week.
October 30, 2012, 12:13 am TWN Rutte won the most seats in the Sept. 12 parliamentary election, which was held against the backdrop of the eurozone crisis, rising unemployment, lower housing prices and a stagnant economy. The two party leaders have reached a deal far faster than expected, underlying the urgent need to form a government given the European crisis and fragile state of the Dutch economy. Labour needs support from its members at a party conference set for Nov. 3 for the deal to be finalized. The agreement includes plans to cut state spending by a further 16 billion euros (US$21 billion) in the next four years, aiming to all but eliminate the budget deficit by 2017, newspapers reported last week.
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