Mark Rutte: Central Plan Bureau

VVD Dept: The leaders of coalition parties will meet next week at Prime Minister Mark Rutte's official mansion to hammer out a package of extra budget cuts to bring down the deficit to the EU-mandated level of 3 per cent of GDP, according to CTV. Rutte, leader of the free-market VVD party, came to power in 2011 pledging to slash spending by C18 billion US$24.2 billion and now has to cut at least C9 billion $12.1 billion more to reduce the deficit to the 3 per cent target and according to draft Central Plan Bureau calculations, the deficit is currently at 4.5 per cent of gross domestic product -- the broadest measure of a country's economic output -- and will remain there next year if the government does not further rein in spending. "These are tough numbers, but this is the new reality," Rutte said in a statement. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.