Dutch Senate approves law to force fair distribution of asylum seekers by 43-27 vote

A large majority in the Eerste Kamer, the Dutch Senate, voted in favor of a bill from the Cabinet to ensure that asylum seekers are received in all municipalities across the Netherlands. The measure allows the national government to force municipalities to take shelter asylum seekers even if they, and their residents, do not wish to comply.

A total of 43 senators gave approval to the new law in a roll-call vote with 70 senators present. The remaining 27 voted against the bill, and their were five people absent. The law must now be ratified by King Willem-Alexander. It is expected to take effect by February 1

The measure had the support of a broad group of left, center, and right political parties. GroenLinks-PvdA brought 14 votes to the table on Tuesday, the VVD brought 9 more, D66 had 5 yes votes, and CDA was good for another 4. The other parties joining them were ChristenUnie (3), PvdD (3), SP (2), Volt (2), and OPNL (1). Those opposed include the BBB (14), PVV (4), JA21 (3), FvD (2), SGP (2), and 50Plus (1). The opponents were also joined by Hugo Doornhof, who broke ranks from the CDA to vote against the measure.

With support from the VVD, the issue posed a threat to the current Cabinet formation negotiations. After the VVD signaled its intent to vote in favor of the asylum bill in the Senate, Geert Wilders repeatedly indicated that it was "a problem."

Wilders is the leader of far-right wing party PVV, and he has been trying to form a government after winning the November general election. His party is currently in talks with the BBB, the largest party in the Senate, and the NSC. The party from former CDA MP Pieter Omtzigt is the fourth largest in the Tweede Kamer.

The PVV first wanted to form a government that includes the VVD, but the latter does not plan on joining the Cabinet. They have said for the past two months that they will support a minority government from Parliament, but a harsh stance on asylum policy has been a cornerstone of Wilders' policy for years. His party is believed to have won over many VVD voters who were also in favor of a stricter position on the issue.

The fair distribution of asylum seekers based on municipal residency has been hotly contested for years, and was particularly divisive within the VVD, the party of Prime Minister Mark Rutte. It was a fellow party member, State Secretary Eric van der Burg, who drafted the law. Rutte himself needed to intervene to convince his party's faction in the Tweede Kamer, the lower house of Parliament, to voice their support for the measure in November 2022.

However, Rutte's fourth Cabinet fell seven months later over clashes with coalition partners about how to handle the asylum crisis in the Netherlands. When Van der Burg's bill came to a vote in the Tweede Kamer in October 2023, one months before the general election, all 34 MPs from VVD voted against it.

One VVD senator was absent for Tuesday's vote, as were senators from CDA and SP. Two senators from BBB also did not show up for the vote.