A local council in Groningen is heading back to court again on Monday in another effort to get the government’s refugee settlement agency COA to solve the accommodation crisis at the Ter Apel reception centre.

The COA has already been fined €1.5 million for failing to keep the number of residents below the maximum 2,000 but with no improvement in sight, Westerwolde council says it has no choice but to go back to court.

The COA has a nationwide shortage of beds, partly because many places are still being occupied by refugees who have been granted residency permits but have nowhere else to live.

However, uncertainty about legislation designed to spread refugees around the country is also having an impact. The right-wing government has pledged to withdraw it, even though most councils want it to stay. And around half the city’s towns and villages are currently providing no refugee accommodation at all.

In January, the courts ruled the COA should pay a fine of €15,000 a day, up to a maximum of €1.5 million for every time the limit is broken. Westerwolde now wants to increase that to €75,000 a day, and a maximum of €7.5 million.

The case will be heard on Monday afternoon and the verdict is due in several weeks.