Since the Dutch election campaign got underway, there has been a buzzword gaining momentum: “Bestaanszekerheid”, which could be translated as ‘livelihood security’.

The Dutch go to the polls on Wednesday 22 November, following the resignation of prime minister Mark Rutte in July after 13 years in office and the collapse of his coalition government over how to handle migration.

In the wake of the multiple crises Europe has faced, most notably the Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine, rising prices for everything from energy to food and housing are making it harder for citizens to make ends meet.

Despite its higher than average income, the Netherlands is no exception, and so the cost of living crisis is at the forefront of political parties’ and trade unions’ messages.

“What is important and positive [in this elections] is that many more political parties, and not only the leftwing parties, are aware of the fact that people’s social welfare is under threat,” Patrick Fey, member of the board of the CNV Trade Union Federation, told EUobserver.

Household electricity prices in the EU increased the most in the Netherlands (by a staggering 953 percent) over the first six months of 2023.

Earlier this year, the Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis (CPB) estimated that over one million people will live in poverty next year, if no government action is taken.