Renovation of the Binnenhof will be considerably more expensive; Facing long delays

The renovation of the Binnenhof is proving to be a financial pit hole. According to sources, the renovation will not only be much more expensive, but may be delayed for years. A "mess" is said to prevail at the central state real estate agency, according to De Telegraaf sources, and Housing Minister Hugo de Jonge also admits that a "new plan" is currently being worked on, writes De Telegraaf.

The reason for the delays is the sharp rise in consulting and planning costs. In addition, inflation and the ongoing war in Ukraine are also said to have driven up the prices of construction materials sharply. According to De Telegraaf, the mega-project is said to be more than 50 percent more expensive than originally planned in 2015.

Of the expected 475 million euros, 734 million euros are now to be spent on the renovation undertaking. According to insiders, the sum is set to rise even further.

In general, the "new Binnenhof" has faced some setbacks. On the one hand, "megalomaniac plans" of an architect for the building of the Tweede Kamer, who had envisaged a tropical office garden, had to be stopped. Consequently, the architect was given a settlement of 2.7 million euros. Furthermore, the Federal Real Estate Agency had to spend vast sums of money on the additional security measures alone, according to the newspaper.