Dutch Asylum Minister Bart van den Brink summons 14 municipalities over asylum housing

Asylum Minister Bart van den Brink has asked mayors and aldermen of fourteen Dutch municipalities to report to the ministry because they have not provided sufficient asylum accommodation. The newly named municipalities include Bunschoten, Vlaardingen and Vught, as well as Aalsmeer, Bronckhorst, Brunssum, De Ronde Venen, Dinkelland, Hardinxveld‑Giessendam, Hellendoorn, Lopik, Montfoort, Oldebroek and Oldenzaal. Together with ten previously warned municipalities, the total list now comprises 24 local authorities that must justify their lack of asylum housing to the national government.

Van den Brink said the forthcoming discussions aim to secure additional asylum reception sites, and that the ministry could, in extreme cases, issue permits for such sites directly. He previously noted that 107 municipalities across the Netherlands are currently not meeting their legal obligations on asylum accommodation.