The Netherlands government announced it intends to declare a state of emergency and enact strict measures to curb migration into the country.

“The Netherlands cannot cope with the large numbers of migrants. Asylum reception is overcrowded, procedures take too long and costs are skyrocketing. In addition, the continuing influx of asylum seekers is causing problems in the areas of public housing, health care and education,” the populist-led government announced.

The government will also formally request to opt-out from the European Union’s migration policy.

“In order to regain control of the situation, this cabinet is introducing the strictest asylum regime ever, as is evident from the government programme published today. By limiting the influx, fast procedures, a punitive approach to troublemakers, stricter border controls, limiting the possibilities for subsequent travel and firmly focusing on return, the Netherlands must become a leader in Europe when it comes to admission rules,” the government’s statement continued.

Breitbart reports:

Dutch Asylum Minister Marjolein Faber, a member of populist Geert Wilders’ Party for Freedom (PVV) said this week that the government will enact a “legal asylum crisis” to stem the tide of mass migration into the country, which is one of the most densely populated in the EU and is suffering a under a housing crisis.

“People are experiencing nuisance, the entire chain is stuck, there are no more houses… We have to do something about the influx – and very quickly. This can be done by declaring a legal asylum crisis,” Faber said according to De Telegraaf.

Faber, who echoed the promise from Wilders to enact the strictest ever asylum system, said that the measure will not require the government to go through the Dutch House of Representatives of Senate as it has the powers to declare such an emergency under the Aliens Act, much to the consternation of pro-mass migration parties of the previous government.

The government has the power to enact emergency asylum restrictions, including pausing all new decisions on refugee status, for a period of up to two years. The asylum minister also said that The Netherlands will also seek an “opt-out” from EU asylum and migration rules, as was previously afforded to Denmark in the 1990s before Brussels formalised the current system.

“The voter has given a clear mandate. We need to change course and the influx must be reduced immediately. We are taking measures to make the Netherlands as unattractive as possible for asylum seekers. And there is no place here for anyone who abuses our hospitality. I am going for a safer Netherlands,” Faber said.

“I’m aiming for the strictest asylum policy ever,” Faber said in a video message, according to POLITICO.

From POLITICO:

Faber said she wants to halt indefinite permits; shorten proceedings; limit family reunification “substantially, for a very large proportion of applicants”; and speed up deportations of “criminal asylum seekers.”

The program also proposes a change to housing laws to prevent asylum seekers with a residence permit from getting priority access to social housing because of that statute in order to “relieve pressure on the housing market.”

Opposition members have already lashed out at Faber’s plan to trigger an emergency law to speed up her migration plans as “anti-democratic.” The Dutch Council for Refugees said Thursday that it was “deeply concerned” that “refugees would pay a high price” for the measures.

The force majeure clauses are there for wars or natural disasters, whereas the country’s asylum problems are the consequences of political choices, the organization argued. “There is no unexpectedly large number of asylum seekers in The Netherlands. No force majeure, but political unwillingness,” the refugee council said.

 

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