The government needs to go back to the drawing board on the bill, which aims to ensure people receive fewer penalties if they make mistakes when claiming benefits. The Justice Council states this in a critical statement.
The law needs to end heavy fines for people making unintentional mistakes. Instead, civil servants should be given the opportunity to gain insight into the personal circumstances of welfare recipients, for example. The new bill also stipulates that authorities can issue a warning if someone makes a mistake.
At the beginning of the year, the draft law was presented by outgoing ministers Van Gennip (social affairs) and Schouten (poverty policy). However, the council, which advises the cabinet on legal issues, believes that the proposal is inadequate and wants the cabinet to review the draft law thoroughly.
Withdrawal of allowances
The advisory board’s main criticism focuses on the withdrawal of aid. Service providers are obliged to recover benefits unfairly provided. However, according to the council, the new bill does not contain any information on this issue. “Such a law also affects the type of installments you collect or when forgiveness is allowed. This remains unclear at the moment,” Justice Council president Henk Naves also told Volkskrant.
The advisory board points out that another law is being prepared to regulate the recovery. However, there is no consistency between these proposals. “The overall picture is not visible enough and existing regulations are being pushed to the background,” the council said in a statement. Naves warns that the new bill could cause even more financial problems for citizens.
Punishment or warning
Essentially a draft law to implement Social Security, the premise of the proposal is to give officials greater ability to take action when problems arise when applying for benefits. For example, authorities should be given the opportunity to waive penalties, impose conditional fines or warnings.
The outgoing cabinet introduced new laws in the wake of the welfare scandal. Hundreds of citizens were deceived because they were mistakenly perceived as fraudsters. Previously, outgoing ministers Van Gennip and Schouten had written that the basis for the new law should be that someone applies for social benefits because it is necessary, not to abuse the system. “Anyone applying for assistance should therefore be treated with confidence,” they previously wrote.
Ministers have not yet responded to the Justice Council’s criticism.
Source: NOS
Emma Fitzgerald is an accomplished political journalist and author at The Nation View. With a background in political science and international relations, she has a deep understanding of the political landscape and the forces that shape it.
