#South #Holland #meets #Jonge #social #housing
The province of South Holland is responding to outgoing minister Hugo de Jonge in the conflict over housing construction. South Holland wants to review various measures that, according to De Jonge, slow down rather than accelerate construction. This means that the coalition parties GroenLinks-PvdA, BBB, VVD and CDA are abandoning some agreements they made last year.
De Jonge has already addressed South Holland several times in recent months about its housing policy. The CDA member sent a letter in March in which he threatened to take control of this file with legal instruments.
South Holland has now responded by letter. The executive board of the province makes many concessions, but in return asks the Minister of Housing for help. De Jonge must provide “solutions and instruments” to ensure that “the right homes in the right place” can be built quickly.
More homes
South Holland promises to build more homes than initially agreed in the period up to 2030: almost 248,000 instead of more than 235,000. The province hopes to achieve this by bringing forward projects for 2031 and 2032 and making additional plans. South Holland will replace approved projects that do not get off the ground more quickly with (new) plans that are more promising. Even if the plans are outside built-up areas, something that was put on hold in the coalition agreement.
South Holland is also abandoning its own policy of aiming for 40 percent social rent in new construction. The national target is 30 percent and De Jonge wants the most populous province (3.8 million inhabitants) to follow that line.
Social housing
More than half of South Holland households are eligible for social housing, but the supply is insufficient. The coalition parties therefore made various agreements last year to explicitly ‘steer’ housing construction. However, it led to a conflict with De Jonge.
That disagreement also concerned what is considered affordable owner-occupied housing. Nationally, that limit has increased to 390,000 euros. South Holland, however, stuck to the ‘old’ limit of 355,000 euros. The province has now informed De Jonge that it wants to “move along”, but wants to be given the instruments and resources to ensure that there is enough social and affordable housing.
The Ministry of the Interior has read the letter and says it will provide a substantive response after the conversation with the province.
