AMSTERDAM, 04/01/06 - In his New Year speech yesterday, Amsterdam Chamber of Commerce chairman H. Zwarts sharply criticised the business climate in the Netherlands. The government paralyses the creativity of citizens and companies, according to Zwarts.

"We have become too much a country of regulations, of umpteen times researching the same thing, of plans that disappear again into the wastebin because we are stuck with procedures here and little rules there. People of courage and talent leave."

As an example, Zwarts named the high-speed (HSL) train link between Paris and Amsterdam, which has been awaited for years. Due to the "green lobby", a one-billion euro tunnel had to be built through a nature area. But for safety requirements, there now still has be a road for the fire brigade right above the tunnel - through the same area.

Another message that the Amsterdam Chamber wants to give local and national politicians is concerns the labour market. Young people must be better connected with the labour market, otherwise the Netherlands will be stuck with a structural labour shortage - also due to the ageing population, according to Zwarts.