In the Netherlands, the dispute over asylum policy would have been so fierce that the government coalition fell apart as a result. This was announced late Friday evening by a message from the ANP news agency.
In recent days, there has been disagreement in the four-party coalition about an action by Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s conservative VVD party. The influx of asylum seekers must be limited.
Rutte’s cabinet announced an emergency cabinet, but did not confirm the end of the coalition. Like other European countries, the Netherlands is struggling with the question of how to deal with the large number of immigrants. The prime minister’s centre-right VVD party had proposed hard rules for asylum seekers and threatened to leave the cabinet if the measures proposed by Rutte were not adopted. In concrete terms, Rutte calls for family reunification to be made more difficult for war refugees.
However, two subordinate parties refused to support this. The Christian Democratic party Christen Unie had stated that it was “not able to live with Rutte’s proposal”, and the centre-left D66 party of Finance Minister Sigrid Kaag allegedly rejected the request. New elections must now be scheduled.
Baby died in migration center
Since taking office a year and a half ago, the Dutch government has been at odds over the issue. A scandal erupted last year when a baby died in a busy migration center. The previous Rutte cabinet resigned in 2021 after a child benefit scandal. According to previous media reports, Rutte was prepared to let the government fail if necessary in the current case. The number of asylum applications in the Netherlands rose by a third last year to more than 46,000 and is expected to rise to more than 70,000 this year – a new record since 2015.
Bad conditions for refugees
This is likely to place a significant burden on the country’s asylum facilities. Over the past year, hundreds of refugees have been forced to sleep outside for months with little or no access to drinking water, sanitation or health care. Rutte had announced that he wanted to improve conditions in the facilities by reducing the number of refugees.
Mark Rutte (56) has been prime minister of the Netherlands for almost 13 years, making him one of the longest-serving heads of government in the EU. As of January 2022, he heads his fourth cabinet following coalition negotiations that have lasted more than nine months, making them the longest in the country’s history. A total of four parties were needed for a majority in the House of Representatives: Rutte’s right-liberal VVD, the left-liberal D66, the CDA and the small Christian Union.
After numerous crises, coalition opinion polls had plummeted. In the most recent provincial elections in March, in which the first chamber of the parliament – comparable to the Bundesrat – was elected, all government parties recorded substantial losses. The big election winner was the right-wing populist farmers’ movement BBB, which immediately became the strongest force. The BBB is represented by only one deputy in the House of Representatives. Great success is predicted for the party in new elections.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
