“The key words (of our policy) are: faster, stricter and more restrictive,” the king said, reading a speech written by Prime Minister Dick Schoof.
It is on the occasion of “Prince’s Day” that the government presents its budget for the following year to the deputies and generally sets the tone for the policy it is pursuing, through the voice of the sovereign.
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The speech is a major event in the Dutch political calendar, with a grand procession of the royal family through the streets of The Hague, the capital.
“Asylum Crisis”
Crowds waving Dutch flags cheered the royal family as they paraded in golden carriages bearing royal regalia, flanked by equerries in traditional costume.
The speech comes days after the ruling coalition unveiled the country’s toughest immigration measures ever, due to what Mr Schoof called an “asylum crisis”.
“As we move towards the introduction of the European Pact on Migration and Asylum in 2026, the Netherlands will apply a much stricter admission regime,” Willem-Alexander said.
The other hat of Queen Maxima of the Netherlands
“Those who do not cooperate with an order to return to their country of origin will be punished and the measures to obtain a Dutch passport will be made stricter,” he added.
Cracks have already appeared within the coalition, which includes Geert Wilders’ far-right Freedom Party (PVV), the farmers’ party BBB, the right-wing liberal VVD and the anti-corruption NSC.
The formation of the government and the drafting of a government programme was already a long and complicated task and disagreements remain.
NSC acting parliamentary leader Nicolien van Vroonhoven said on Monday that his party would only vote for tough immigration measures if the State Council’s advisory body gave the green light.
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This sparked the ire of Mr Wilders, who said on the social network X: “The Netherlands has a huge asylum crisis and it will not be solved by running away and threatening… to vote no.”
Mr Wilders was the surprise winner of November’s election but gave up his ambitions to become prime minister after at least one coalition party threatened to walk out of talks.
