PVV leader Geert Wilders will still vote for the asylum laws now that they have been tightened by the House of Representatives on Tuesday. Despite this tightening, it remains uncertain whether a majority of the House of Representatives will support the laws: former coalition partner NSC is still considering.
“It is a step in the right direction, so we support the laws,” Wilders says on X. He would prefer to see the plans in the field of asylum even stricter, and refers to his ten-point plan on which he dropped the Schoof cabinet.
Wilders’ support for the laws of his own former asylum minister Marjolein Faber was uncertain after the debate last week. PVV MP Marina Vondeling indicated that her party would not agree to a “weak derivative” of the laws.
Other parties in the House of Representatives had submitted dozens of amendments. Three plans also came from the PVV, including making illegal stay and assistance to it punishable.
The laws in brief
PVV amendment also causes uncertainty
That amendment was unexpectedly adopted due to a mistake in the House of Representatives. Several opposition members were absent in connection with Ketikoti. Normally, it is agreed with an ‘opponent’ in the House of Representatives that he or she will also stay away from the vote. This way nothing changes in the outcome.
But that went wrong around GroenLinks-PvdA, Party for the Animals and NSC. As a result, PVV’s plan suddenly gained a majority and must be incorporated into the asylum emergency measures law. To the satisfaction of Wilders, who also announces that he will give the green light to the other law, the two-status system.
With the approval of PVV, a majority in the House of Representatives seems in sight. Former coalition partners VVD, NSC and BBB have also fully advocated for the laws in recent times.
At the same time, it remains uncertain. Due to the PVV amendment, doubt has arisen at the NSC. The party supports the laws, but is against criminalizing illegal stay. They are therefore still considering their choice tomorrow.
Should the laws still gain a majority in the House of Representatives, it remains to be seen whether they will make it in the Senate. The former coalition partners do not have a majority there.
In order to get that anyway, attention was mainly paid to the CDA. But CDA leader Henri Bontenbal announced on Wednesday that he would not agree to this. He also has difficulty with the adopted PVV amendment. As a result, the asylum emergency measures law has become “impassable” for the CDA. The party already had major objections to the two-status system anyway.