Westland swaps asylum housing duties with two neighbouring towns

Over the next four years, Westland will take over the housing of 32 status holders (refugees granted a residence permit) from Wassenaar. In return, Wassenaar will take over the reception of 40 asylum seekers from Westland. Westland had already struck a similar deal with Midden-Delfland, and the two swaps together cover the reception of 146 asylum seekers.

Under the Spreidingswet (dispersal law), Westland must take in 643 asylum seekers by the middle of next year, according to a March estimate by asylum minister Bart van den Brink (CDA). Municipalities may agree among themselves to cooperate and swap tasks. Westland, Delft, Wassenaar, Rijswijk, Leidschendam-Voorburg and Pijnacker-Nootdorp have all made such agreements.

What Westland swaps with each town

Town	Westland takes over housing of status holders	Town takes over reception of asylum seekers
Wassenaar	32	40
Midden-Delfland	84	106

Midden-Delfland already has an agreement with the COA, the asylum reception agency, to take in 225 asylum seekers, more than required. The deal with Westland means it has to house fewer status holders.

Westland will house the status holders at two locations in Naaldwijk. The former Carlton hotel will be converted into 76 apartments with shared cooking facilities, and 24 housing units will be built in a former office building.

Wassenaar will take in asylum seekers for four municipalities, at the existing reception site on the grounds of the Duinrell holiday park. The municipality says the arrangements mean Wassenaar will in principle not need any social housing for status holders over the next five years.

In March, the Westland council voted down a proposal to take in 140 asylum seekers. The municipal executive wrote to the council on Thursday that it sees the deal as "a good example of how a task facing society as a whole can be organised differently".