Friday 27 January 2023

Dutch customs intercepted 27,000 letters containing drugs last year

Dutch customs intercepted 27,000 letters containing drugs last year

Dutch customs officials intercepted some 27,000 letters containing illegal drugs last year, with ecstasy and MDMA shipments to the US and Australia heading the list. The 2022 figure is a sharp rise on 2021, when officials confiscated 15,000 items of post containing drugs. In 2020, the figure was 4,000. The increase, customs officials say, is down to more intensive controls. The Netherlands has come under pressure from abroad to check more post for illegal substances, particularly by the US and... More >

Going Dutch? A2 remains the norm

Going Dutch? A2 remains the norm

The government has postponed the introduction of tougher language tests for people who want to become Dutch because of the ‘complexity’ of the plans. The coalition agreement includes a commitment to increase the language level to become Dutch from A2 to B1 from this year, but the plan has now been delayed and no new deadline has been set. ‘At the moment justice and social affairs ministry officials are working together to determine the best way to shape the increase... More >

Bats versus wall insulation in court

Bats versus wall insulation in court

Sustainability and the legal obligation to protect bats are being pitted against each other in front of the Netherlands’ highest administrative court, NU.nl reported this week. The case centres on an insulation company in Utrecht which, local officials say, did not do enough to check for bats before installing cavity wall insulation. Bats are a protected species but very little is being done to keep them safe from the ‘rampant insulation cowboy practices of the last 10 to 15 years’,... More >

Archaeology book pulped over abuse charges

Archaeology book pulped over abuse charges

Amsterdam city council has ordered the destruction of the complete first edition of a book compiled by former city archaeologist Jerzy Gawronski following an investigation into the author’s alleged bullying. The council did not share the findings of the investigation but did order the 4,000 copies of Onder de Amstel, which was to be presented in December last year, to be pulped at a cost of €150,000, the NRC reported. The book was commissioned by the city and tells one... More >

Inspectors seize 280 dogs from breeder

Inspectors seize 280 dogs from breeder

Government inspectors have seized 280 dogs found living in insanitary and unhealthy living conditions at a dog breeding business in Eersel in Brabant. According to local broadcaster Omroep Brabant, the NVWA had already checked the premises 10 times and just last month 29 dogs were taken away because they were in need of immediate medical care. The owners were told to improve the dogs’ living conditions but inspectors found the remaining animals in an even worse state during their last... More >

COA needs to find 38,000 refugee places

COA needs to find 38,000 refugee places

The government is facing a shortfall of around 38,000 beds for asylum seekers this spring unless it arranges more emergency accommodation, according to estimates compiled by Nieuwsuur. The COA, the organisation responsible for accommodating refugees, negotiated a number of deals for temporary shelter to relieve the reception centre in Ter Apel, which suffered from chronic overcrowding problems in the summer. But many of those contracts are due to expire in the coming months. Asylum minister Eric van der Burg said... More >

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