It is 10 years this year since a German politician dubbed private equity firms “locusts”. A decade on and the term is being used again; not in Germany, but this time in the Netherlands.

The Dutch buyout market has come under significant pressure since Henk Nijboer, a member of the Dutch parliament and financial spokesperson for the PvdA party, one of the governing parties in the Netherlands, said earlier this year that he wants to come up with laws to curb the "dark and reprehensible" side of the industry. The PvdA's policy outline, which will be published in August, will include proposals to restrict dividend recaps and limit the amount of leverage being used.