The ruling VVD and its PVV alliance partner want people claiming welfare benefits (bijstand) to be required by law to do community-related tasks, such as weed flower beds or pour coffee in nursing homes, the Telegraaf reported on Wednesday.

VVD MP Malik Azmani is to introduce the idea during this week’s debate on the social affairs ministry budget.
‘The longer people are on welfare, the harder it is to get back into society. It is good to gather work experience,’ Azmani is quoted as saying in the NRC.
He wants social affairs minister Henk Kamp to come up with draft legislation within three months.

Majority
According to the NRC, the CDA also supports the idea, which would give it a narrow majority in parliament.
Azmani told the NRC that Vlagtwedde and Spijkenisse town councils have already introduced a form of work for welfare. ‘There people on welfare do all sorts of socially useful jobs,’ he said.
According to a survey by social security research group Divosa, just 13% of people do not consider it acceptable for benefit claimants to be asked to work in return.
Some 300,000 people are currently claiming welfare benefits.