Asylum minister calls reception 'untenable', asks all councils for extra places
Municipalities across the Netherlands are asked to open new asylum places and keep existing ones open longer, with the first deadline on 1 November.
Asylum minister Bart van den Brink (CDA) calls the situation in asylum reception "untenable" in letters to municipalities and the Tweede Kamer. Without intervention, the shortage of places at the COA will grow to 3,600 early next year and 7,600 in April, he writes.
Why it matters
- Municipalities are asked to keep existing reception locations open longer; a planned closure should go ahead only for "weighty reasons".
- Municipalities are asked to house refugees with a residence permit faster, so they free up reception places.
- Overijssel, Drenthe, Flevoland, Friesland and Zeeland must each provide 150 extra places by 1 November, 230 by 1 January and 500 by 1 April.
- The extra places are in principle needed until 1 October next year.
The shortfall estimate already takes into account the extension of a large number of locations, Van den Brink says. The lack of space in Ter Apel and other locations puts safety at risk and places "great pressure on the COA and all its staff".
"To arrive at enough reception places, I need you as local government," he writes. Many municipalities have taken on this responsibility for years, and he thanks them, but "the sum of this effort is structurally too little to bring calm to reception".
Targets by province
Overijssel's extra asylum place target rises to 500 by April
Extra places required
Overijssel's extra asylum place target rises to 500 by April (extra places required). Highest: 1 Apr, 500; lowest: 1 Nov, 150; 3 items. Source: Asylum minister's letter to municipalities.
| Item | extra places required |
|---|---|
| 1 Nov | 150.0 |
| 1 Jan | 230.0 |
| 1 Apr | 500.0 |
The other provinces, which have a larger backlog in housing asylum seekers, must create 800 places by 1 April. Groningen is asked for only 150. Provinces are to coordinate the request from central government.
Van den Brink says he is aware the extra request "complicates" the task for municipalities, which already have to meet the spreidingswet, the dispersal law. "At the same time, we share the responsibility to find a way out of this," he writes. He also stresses that the cabinet has already taken "big steps" in legislation to limit arrivals.
In numbers: Migration in numbers
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Tweede Kamer
The House of Representatives, the lower and more powerful house of the Dutch parliament. Its 150 members are elected directly; it can amend bills and holds the cabinet to account.
COA (Centraal Orgaan opvang asielzoekers)
The independent government body that houses and looks after asylum seekers while their applications are processed. It runs reception centres across the country and falls under the minister responsible for asylum and migration.
Spreidingswet
The law that spreads the reception of asylum seekers across Dutch municipalities. Each province and municipality is asked to provide a share of the places; a municipality that does not can be placed under supervision and, in the end, instructed by the minister.