The government is to launch a ‘future fund’ using the profit from the country’s national gas supplies, the Financieele Dagblad reports on Tuesday.

The idea to set up the fund, which will be used to strengthen research into innovation and the development of small and medium-sized companies, came from left-wing liberal D66 party leader Alexander Pechtold. He made it a condition for his party’s involvement in the budget agreement for 2015.

The coalition parties liberal democratic VVD and Labour and the two small Christian parties have now agreed the ‘future fund’ should be set up, the FD reports.

The three ‘friendly’ opposition parties are working with the government to ensure legislation is voted through the upper house of parliment where the coalition does not have a majority.

€12bn

It is not yet known how big the fund will be. Pechtold said earlier he wanted €100m to be put into the fund in 2015, increasing to €500m in 2017 and to as much as €12bn a year from then on.

Economic affairs minister Henk Kamp said earlier this year he is against the fund. The money should go towards shrinking the budget deficit and government debt, he said.

The government aims to present the new fund on budget day in September.