Dutch Communities Fight Back Against Asylum Centres I MCC Brussels Podcast

Host Jacob Reynolds is joined by Richard Schenk and Daniel de Liever, editor at the Dutch news and commentary platform NieuwRechts. First, the panel turns to the growing revolt against asylum centres in the Netherlands. After scandals surrounding the huge centralised cetnre in Ter Apel, smaller centres are now being imposed on unwilling municipalities. Daniel explains how pressure on Ter Apel became the justification for spreading asylum seekers across the country, why local election promises have proved powerless and why public frustration is becoming increasingly difficult to contain. The second topic is the resignation of Jens Spahn, leader of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group, after he and his husband used a surrogate in the United States. The panel discusses the charge of hypocrisy, Germany’s ban on surrogacy and the EU’s attempt to make cross-border parenthood arrangements binding across member states. Finally, the episode turns to Donald Trump’s proposed UN declaration on freedom of speech. Is it a useful challenge to Europe’s speech controls, or another attempt to settle national political questions through international institutions? The discussion ranges from the Digital Services Act and the Democracy Shield to media regulation and the economic cost of Europe’s regulatory state.