Amsterdam, Delft, The Hague, Eindhoven, Utrecht and Maastricht are among the Dutch local authorities which have said they are shocked by government plans to stop them prioritising refugees when it comes to housing.

The plan is “inhumane” and will not solve any problems, the 16 councils have said in a reaction. They have called on housing minister Mona Keijzer to withdraw the plan, which was put out to consultation on Monday, immediately. The measure was included in the coalition agreement.

The councils say the move will only increase the pressure on asylum seeker centres, where 19,000 people should have moved out into regular accommodation. Refugees with residency permits are currently occupying around one-third of refugee centre beds.

The councils say the move will not only cause more pressure throughout the asylum system but will make it harder for people to learn Dutch and integrate into regular society. Nor, they say, will it solve the housing shortage.

“The housing shortages in our cities are not caused by asylum seekers but by a shortage of social housing,” the statement said. “That is where the solution lies. Require all local councils to ensure at least 30% of new homes are social housing. It is inhumane to place the blame on people who are vulnerable.”

The waiting lists for social housing average at least seven years, but in some places, such as Amsterdam, it is more than double that.

Councils will remain responsible for providing housing for a certain number of refugees every year, and Keijzer wants them to come up with other ideas, such as shared homes.

The Dutch local authorities association VNG has already warned the cabinet that by not giving refugees priority, the backlog of people living in temporary accommodation will continue to grow. That, in turn, will put even more pressure on official refugee accommodation and the current shortage of beds.

Some 19,000 people with residency status are still living in accommodation which has been reserved for new arrivals because there is nowhere else for them to go.

Housing corporation association Aedes also warned MPs last week that not allowing refugees to jump the queue and live in proper housing will make it harder for them to integrate and contribute to Dutch society.

€30,0000

Last Friday, immigration minister Marjolein Faber said she is prepared to pay local authorities €30,000 per person if they provide other housing for refugees with residency permits who are living in official refugee centres.

She will also pay €60 a day per person if councils develop temporary housing where refugees can start their lives in the Netherlands outside the centres.

However, last year, Faber rejected plans by Apeldoorn city council to provide shared accommodation for 50 refugees because it is “not basic enough.”

That plan included giving each refugee their own bedroom but did not fit with the minister’s idea of basic housing for refugees who have a residency permit and are waiting for more permanent housing.