Jan 30, 2024 at 12:28 am
At least an additional 600 million euros are needed this year to accommodate asylum seekers, but that may not be enough. This was said by outgoing State Secretary Eric van der Burg (Asylum Affairs) on Monday in a debate with the House of Representatives about the asylum and migration budget.
Van der Burg does not rule out that he will have to go to the House of Representatives again this spring to request an extra budget again, he indicated during the debate. The PVV, among others, thinks that extra budget is far too much. Only when the extra money is voted on will it become clear whether the PVV agrees, said PVV MP Gidi Markuszower.
NSC, BBB and VVD, the parties that are negotiating with the PVV about the formation of a new cabinet, also have difficulty with the amount. NSC also finds it incomprehensible that the budget for the reception of asylum seekers is budgeted too low every year. “Why is that?” NSC MP Caspar Veldkamp wanted to know from the State Secretary.
Van der Burg listed the three most important causes. First of all, crisis emergency shelter and emergency shelter for asylum seekers are much more expensive than regular shelters. A regular shelter costs approximately 30,000 euros per year, compared to approximately 60,000 euros for a place in (crisis) emergency shelter. Since the start of the reception crisis in 2021, many asylum seekers have been accommodated in this (crisis) emergency shelter.
In addition, the reception of minor asylum seekers is expensive. These unaccompanied minors (unaccompanied minors) are housed in small-scale facilities and need good guidance, Van der Burg explained. The influx of unaccompanied minors was also significantly higher last year (5,804) than the 4,207 in 2022.
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Asylum influx has been higher than estimated for years
Above all, the influx of asylum seekers has been higher than estimated for years. “If you get 50,000 people, while you assume structurally 35,000 people, then a problem arises,” said the State Secretary.
PVV, NSC, VVD, BBB and also JA21 emphasized the importance of limiting the influx during the debate. The current numbers are “unsustainable”, said Veldkamp and Mona Keijzer (BBB), among others. NSC reiterated that the aim should be a migration balance and a target figure.
NSC wants a maximum of 50,000 migrants per year, including study, knowledge and asylum migrants. BBB wants to admit a maximum of 15,000 asylum seekers per year in the Netherlands. The PVV would prefer an asylum stop, but realizes that this is not feasible at the moment. The VVD does not want to mention numbers, but believes that the influx of asylum seekers should be significantly reduced.
In two weeks the House of Representatives will vote on the extra budget.
2024-01-29 23:28:13
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