A second asylum boat will arrive in Meppel. Since last year, 98 men have been staying on a small cruise ship in the city center. Last night, Mayor Korteland announced that a second boat will be coming to relieve the pressure on the application center in Ter Apel. The councilors were surprised by the news, but they do support the decision.
“As a council, we have expressed that we are ready to receive refugees, and that in a good and pleasant way. We want to take our responsibility,” says municipal councilor Egbert Knorren (CDA). The hotel boat for 110 refugees will be moored in the Meppeler Diep, near the trade route.
The mayor does not have to ask the city council for permission for this, and has not done so. However, he could immediately count on the full support of the council. “Of course you know that this is coming when you look at the situation in Ter Apel,” says Xander Topma (SP). “That is a degrading event. People sleep outside, you have to come up with a solution for that.”
“I think this is a political failure. It’s a terrible cluster fuck from The Hague which ends up on our sign. As a municipality, we do what we have to do, but I also look to The Hague for real solutions.”
Meppel is preparing for a second asylum boat (article continues below the video):