He points out that the distribution law idea is good, but not in the way it is presented now. “As municipalities, we would like a distribution law to be introduced,” he says. “Because then the burden will be equally divided among 342 municipalities and each will make a proportionate contribution to the hospitalization”.
“We just want to introduce a distribution law”
But with the same appeal, the Society of Mayors also imagines a ‘clear and feasible’ bill. Exactly what the current distribution law is not, according to Spies. “That means we have a lot of objections.”
Two-stage rocket
According to Spies, the poor feasibility is due to the “two-stage rocket” built into the law. “Normally you’d really like to know how many people need to be treated in a year,” Spies continues. “Because that law should have been in effect on January 1st. In this bill, a first distribution is made precisely on January 1st and a second one on May 1st.
In the second breakdown, the vacancies that will be created between 1 January and 1 May would be deducted from the total, so that the municipalities that have not done anything up to that moment ‘free themselves with a scare’. «Because those who do their best between January 1 and May 1 will end up being assigned some tasks by the municipalities that have done nothing up until May 1. It’s a strange incentive and leads to doing nothing to be rewarded. And we don’t help each other in this.’
Amendment
Spies is hopeful that the law will be changed and hopes that “everyone will always be open to things that could be done better.” “And I assume that this also applies to the VVD parliamentary group,” she concludes. “We have talked to many political groups and now, unlike when the political compromise was reached, there are also recommendations.”
He quotes the Council of State advice, which also says that the current distribution law is too complicated and could be simpler. (…). “We now have experience in the Netherlands with laws that are difficult or difficult to implement, and we don’t want that anymore,” says Spies. “So add the action to the word. And I want to invite them to do it quickly, because the secretary of state has promised the municipalities a law on distribution on January 1, 2023. But hopefully, we won’t have it until 2024″.