'If we don't solve the nitrogen crisis, our economy will get stuck': Dutch deputy PM

The Dutch agricultural industry is an important one, and the Netherlands is Europe's biggest meat exporter. On the farmers' movement and nitrogen emissions, Kaag says: "There’s a real issue in our country – the nitrogen crisis. If we don't solve it appropriately, in a way that's aligned with rules and legislation, then the economy will become stuck; farmers will not have the prospect of a sustainable future, and they're entitled to a sustainable way of farming and a sustainable way of life. Nature will be impacted, and it won't be restored to where it ought to be."

Kaag seems very sceptical about the possibility of re-opening the coalition agreement when it comes to the nitrogen emissions policy – something that has been mooted in the light of the no-confidence vote in parliament.

"The coalition's nitrogen emissions policy didn't come out of thin air," she says. "And it wasn"t driven out of ideology or political preference. It was based on science and on a sense of urgency, to tackle, basically, what has been an outcome of years of either denial or looking away. We owe it to all citizens, including to the farmers, to tackle this. As the leader of my party, D66, I say, we want to do the job right, or there's no point in doing it at all. Now, politics is also the art of the compromise, but we also need to be very mindful of the art of doing what's right, as well as the quality of the compromise."

On new technologies that might allow the EU to become more competitive, Kaag says: "We need to leapfrog, we need to stay ahead of the game. I see value in the right kind of investments. We have to target the type of investments that will create business opportunities." "Many startups can be frontrunners in the future," she adds.

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