News item | 16-12-2025 | 16:36
Minister Mona Keijzer of Housing and Spatial Planning is positive about the Housing Package that the European Commission presented on Tuesday. The package should better enable Member States to tackle the housing shortage. For example, changes to state aid rules will give countries more options to finance the construction of mid-range rental housing from 1 January 2026. The Commission also wants to identify which EU rules can be relaxed and reduce administrative burdens to speed up construction procedures and make them cheaper. A proposal for this will be made in 2027.
“The Netherlands has been calling for adjustment and simplification of European legislation and regulations for some time,” says Minister Keijzer. “It is good to see that this message has reached Brussels. More and more countries are encountering restrictions. Measures and deregulation are needed sooner than 2027, but a first step has been taken. I will now consult with the Commission as soon as possible to see how we can take advantage of the opportunities offered in the Netherlands. Early next year, the cabinet will inform the House of Representatives about the Dutch efforts.”
By changing the state aid rules, governments will have the opportunity to financially support housing associations or other developers for the construction of mid-range rental homes, where this is currently only permitted for social housing. Removing and simplifying rules is aimed, among other things, at a more pragmatic approach to species protection within the Birds and Habitats Directives. Procedures can be accelerated by using good, exchangeable data via Building Information Modeling (BIM). The Commission also wants to encourage factory and modular construction of homes to accelerate housing construction, focus on training programs to ensure sufficient personnel and promote the use of recycled and bio-based materials.