The Netherlands will become ungovernable if local councils refuse to accept the new tasks they are being given by central government, home affairs minister Piet Hein Donner told a television current affairs show on Sunday.

Councils will have to carry out the work because a majority of MPs have voted in favour of the plan, the minister said. ‘In the end, law makers decide,’ he told Buitenhof.
The concept agreement was finalised in April, but since then opposition has been growing. On Wednesday, the local authorities association VNG will debate the plan.
Spending cuts
The agreement sets out the terms for transferring responsibility for a large number of policy areas from national to local government, and is part of the cabinet’s strategy to cut central civil service spending by €1.8bn.
The 12 provinces will have more responsibility for nature management, planning and transport. Local councils will have a greater role in running youth services, home care, and welfare and invalidity benefits.
If councils plan to vote against the transfer of power because they have a different political colour to the coalition government, the whole strategy will fall apart, Donner said.
Opposition
A number of councils have voiced their opposition to the agreement, saying not enough money has been allocated to implement it. In particular, they are worried about the effect on sheltered work schemes for people with a handicap.
Opposition MPs are also opposed to the plan and accuse Donner of authoritarianism and scaremongering.
In total, Donner expects to reduce the size of the central government apparatus by up to 15,000 jobs over four years, he told Buitenhof.