The shops in Katwijk are not yet allowed to open on Sundays. As expected, a majority of the municipal council voted on Thursday evening against an initiative proposal from the VVD to introduce Sunday opening in the South Holland coastal municipality as of July 1 next year.
The decisive vote came from coalition party DURF, the largest faction in the council with nine seats. The party announced during a debate earlier this month that it wanted to postpone the decision until after the elections, because it has committed itself to the agreement in the coalition agreement not to introduce a shopping Sunday during this council period.
Leader Max van Duijn spoke of a “transparent trick” by the VVD to put the proposal to the vote before the elections. According to him, the voter must first speak out about it. Lennart van der Plas (VVD) then noted that the voter has already spoken out, namely in the previous elections.
At the same time, DURF stated that it was “in principle” not opposed to Sunday shopping. In doing so, the party moved cautiously towards a growing share of the council, which believes that entrepreneurs should be able to choose whether they open on Sundays. For the denominations, who live by Sunday rest, this is not open to discussion.
Election campaign
The issue has divided the municipality, which consists of four village centers, for years. Roughly speaking, the proponents of Sunday shopping are mainly located in Rijnsburg and Valkenburg, two centers that have been part of the municipality since 2006. In the traditionally religious Katwijk, the opponents are in the majority.
The discussion started in 2024, when the council decided to investigate the support for Sunday shopping. The survey gave a mixed picture, allowing both supporters and opponents to use it in the debate.
Although Thursday’s vote did not result in a majority, the Sunday opening seems to be increasingly within reach with DURF’s position. The upcoming municipal elections, on March 18, have already been declared by some parties as a referendum on Sunday rest.
The election campaign has already started in Katwijk. SGP faction leader Dirk Remmelzwaal was, he said during the debate, also “happy” that the VVD had given its voters a reason to go to the polls later. “If you want to maintain peace in Katwijk, please watch what you vote for.”
Also read
Will shops open on Sundays in Katwijk from now on? That question divides the fishing village
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