Halbe Zijlstra, leader of the parliamentary VVD, told a television talk show on Sunday he expects the cabinet will be forced to make extra spending cuts in September, despite hopes they can be delayed.

Last week, unions, employers and ministers reached agreement on delaying a €4.3bn package of extra cuts designed to bring the budget deficit below the eurozone limit of 3% next year.

However, ministers did reserve the right to look again at the situation after the summer to assess if the cuts are necessary after all.

Zijlstra, who leads the biggest grouping of MPs, said he considered this to be ‘a bit of an odd construction’ and said he expects new macro-economic figures in September will make the cuts necessary.

This is because the cabinet’s commitment to meeting eurozone targets remains firm, Zijlstra said.

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