Dutch populist politician Geert Wilders calls for referendum on dropping euro, return to guilder
The idea is not likely to succeed in the short term, but it marks a significant change in the discussion over the euro in one of the “core” euro-zone countries — one of the few, along with Germany, that retains a top-notch credit rating.
Wilders is mostly known for his anti-immigrant stances, but he also is a longtime skeptic of European projects. He has opposed any aid for struggling countries during the sovereign debt crisis, saying the Greeks should return to the drachma. He also was a prominent figure in the Netherlands’ rejection of the European constitution in 2005.
Wilders enlisted the aid of British eurosceptic financial firm Lombard Street for a report on the costs of leaving the euro. Study author Charles Dumas said he calculated that Dutch per-capita income would be €1,800 ($2,375) per year higher if it had never joined the euro, in part by using comparisons to non-euro countries Switzerland and Sweden.
Ronald Plasterk, a leader of the opposition Labor party, called Wilders’ plan “a fantasy,” but said if he is serious, he should put leaving the euro at the heart of budget negotiations. The Lombard analysis says the Netherlands would save far more money by leaving the euro than it is targeting with spending cuts.
“Be a man and follow through,” Plasterk said on RTL television.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/major-dutch-political-party-calls-for-dropping-euro-return-to-guilder/2012/03/05/gIQAAJ2EsR_story.html