The Daily Populous Saturday September 14th, 2024 day edition
Authored by dw.com and submitted by donutloop

The new far-right government in the Netherlands wants to wind back several policies in order to reduce the number of people seeking asylum. EU authorities have questioned the legality of the move.

The Netherlands is looking to use crisis laws to reduce the number of asylum seekers entering the country.

The new government, led by nationalist Geert Wilders' anti-Islam PVV party, said on Friday it would declare a national state of emergency so that it could alter certain asylum laws.

"We are taking measures to make the Netherlands as unattractive as possible for asylum seekers," Asylum Minister Marjolein Faber said in a statement.

Around 40,000 asylum seekers arrive in the Netherlands every year.

The Dutch government said it would end the granting of open-end asylum permits and limit the circumstances when people who have already been granted asylum could bring immediate family members to join them.

It said it would use a royal decree to enact emergency powers — similar to those used during the COVID-19 pandemic — allowing it to take measures that would normally need to be approved by parliament.

It only said that it planned to do this "as soon as possible," without providing more detail.

However, this must be legally justified. Some experts have already questioned whether the number of new asylum seekers, which has remained stable, can reasonably be declared a crisis.

The European Union is also likely to push back because member states have already agreed on their migration pact. Opt-outs are usually discussed in the negotiating phase.

"We have adopted legislation, you don't opt out of adopted legislation in the EU, that is a general principle," EU spokesperson Eric Mamer told reporters on Friday.

ainsley- on September 14th, 2024 at 07:39 UTC »

Rest of Europe hopefully follows suit

No_Apartment3941 on September 14th, 2024 at 04:53 UTC »

Well played. Stem that flow!

donutloop on September 14th, 2024 at 04:36 UTC »

Submission Statement

The Dutch government, led by Geert Wilders' far-right PVV party, plans to declare a national state of emergency to implement emergency laws aimed at reducing asylum seekers. Proposed measures include limiting family reunification for those granted asylum and ending open-ended asylum permits. This move has sparked legal concerns, as experts question whether the current number of asylum seekers, which remains stable at around 40,000 annually, justifies such a crisis. The European Union has also signaled opposition, reminding the Netherlands that it cannot opt out of the EU migration pact. Despite lacking a clear timeline, the government’s goal is to deter asylum seekers from choosing the Netherlands.