There have been protests about plans to provide housing for refugees in at least 49 of the Netherlands’ 342 local authorities so far this year, and 21 proposals were delayed or altered, current affairs show Nieuwsuur reported at the weekend.
In some cases, council officials admitted that the changes or delays were due to angry reactions from locals, Nieuwsuur said.
In the seaside town of Noordwijk, for example, protests led to a confrontation with police and a change of council position.
“A number of councillors have switched sides, and that would seem to be under pressure from protestors,” local official Martijn Kortleven told the programme. “Then the councillors can say in public, ‘we are listening to the people’.”
Local authority elections take place in March 2026.
Kortleven said some of the unease stems from legislation designed to ensure all councils take their fair share of refugees, which the caretaker cabinet had planned to scrap under pressure from the far right.
“National politicians are sowing so much doubt that the discussion about refugee accommodation has switched to local politics,” he told the programme. “Opponents are seizing the opportunity.”
In July, Coevorden town council said it had abandoned plans to provide accommodation for 14 teenage girls, all refugees with residency permits, because it could not guarantee their safety.
Last month, Amersfoort council dropped plans to house some 750 refugees in several centres following protests but pledged to come up with a new proposal. There have been violent protests in Doetinchem and demonstrations in Nieuwerkerk aan den IJssel, Heemskerk and Haarlem.
Councils have urged the caretaker government to act swiftly to address problems around accommodation for asylum seekers, warning that local councils are being left to cope “on their own.”
Some 18,000 people currently living in formal refugee accommodation should have moved to regular housing but cannot do so because of the shortage of homes.
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