People who riot, not taxpapers, should pick up the bill for policing costs as well as the damage they cause, say MPs from the right-wing Liberal VVD.

At the moment, the state foots the bill for ‘maintaining public order’. This means taxpayers have to pay the police costs for events like the Project X riots in Haren last year.

The VVD points out that the organisers of legal events, who apply for a permit, pick up part of the public order costs. But illegal parties, like the Haren event, are paid for out of the public purse.

‘This has to change,’ VVD parliamentarian Klaas Dijkhoff told news agency ANP. The party wants justice minister Ivo Opstelten to press for a change in the law and claims a majority of parliament supports the plan.