Senate delivered about cutbacks for district nursing and pandemic readiness
:format(webp)/s3/static.nrc.nl/images/gn4/stripped/data129619412-a5cfa1.jpg "Senate delivered about cutbacks for district nursing and pandemic readiness")
In any other year we would approve this without plenary treatment, the VVD said. It is suddenly politically charged, the PVV added. Normally this is a hammer, said other first -first members.
But the controversial cut on nurses who suddenly received Minister Fleur Agema (Zorg, PVV) on her plate in December changed everything. Roel van Gurp (GroenLinks-PvdA): « We have seen a surrealist spectacle in recent months. »
The Senate dealt with the budget of the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport (VWS)-with 110 billion the second largest budget of all departments on Tuesday afternoon and evening. And the Senate, who in principle always focuses on the legality, feasibility and enforceability Van Wetten, now also showed extremely critical of the content. After three written rounds of questions and a hearing with experts about pandemic readiness (is the Netherlands ready for a next pandemic five years after Corona?) The VWS budget was finally on the agenda-much later than normal. In the meantime, the financial year 2025 has already advanced considerably.
The senators also proved extremely critical on Tuesday. Two topics jumped out: the controversial cut from December and the cutbacks on pandemic readiness.
Appointment with opposition
To save the education budget, the coalition parties made December last year the appointment With opposition parties CDA, ChristenUnie, JA21 and SGP to delete 700 million in cuts. Part of it had to be resolved in the care budget of Agema. Most controversial cut Was that of 165 million euros in training and training for healthcare staff in the hospital, such as nurses. Agema already mentioned that cutback at the time an ‘accident’, the coalition parties later talked about a ‘mistake’.
Agema had to look for an alternative, but That took a while. As long as it remained unclear what that alternative cut would look like, the Senate shifted the treatment of the care budget for itself. Reluctantly, and audibly irritated. « In any case, this minister is not paid for the number of concrete answers she gives, » noted Senator Marian Kaljouw (VVD) in a debate in February. It was not until mid -March that the 165 million will be removed from the unused budget For neighborhood nursing, or home care. « It was very surprising that the minister needed so much time to find a solution, » said Janny Bakker-Klein (CDA) on Tuesday.
Agema replied that she was sorry that it had taken so long. She pointed out the negotiations about the Spring Memorandum, which will come out this month: « I first had to wait and see which there would be with and setbacks. »
Dissatisfied
The Senate MPs were also not really satisfied with the chosen alternative either. The senators – not only opposition but also, for example, the VVD and the BBB – were concerned about the consequences. They pointed to the suspending aging, which means that the money removed from the neighborhood nursing may now be necessary in the future. Several parties also preferred the money to be put into recruitment campaigns for new district nurses or in an increase in the salary. « It is a heart’s desire of almost all the elderly to stay at home for as long as possible, and it is also the cheapest, » said Carla Moonen (D66). « That combination is not common. Do not remove any money here, but spend it! »
According to Agema, the under -spending of the budget is due to the shortage of staff, but also because nurses are fewer hours with an older person because more people can look at what people can do themselves. According to her there is enough money. She fell there, Just like before in the Lower Housealso about a cutbacks: « That hurts me. » It is not a cut, she thinks, because the money was nevertheless on the shelf: « So no cuts are being made on the district nurses. »
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The cutback of 300 million on the Planemic Preaatheid plan – correctly presented in 2022 in preparation for a new pandemic – was also bad. « What lessons did you actually learn from the Coronacrisis? » Asked Lies van Aelst-Den Uijl (SP). « This feels like short -term thinking. » Roel van Gurp called it a « cynical » cut.
According to Agema, the pandemic readiness is ‘on its retina’. She called the cutback « very unfortunate, » but pointed out that the cabinet is working on the resilience plan, which is presented before the summer. Several ministries work together to make the Netherlands more resilient against pandemies, terror threat, natural disasters and wars. « That plan has a strong overlap with pandemic readiness. »
Also criticism from the House of Representatives
In October last year, Agema also received substantial criticism from the Lower House in her budget, including her own PVV. She wants to cut back on healthcare for hundreds of millions of, but could not substantiate that, the MPs then judged. Her plans are vague, in many areas there is no concrete plans. Agema then emphasized that the cabinet should cut back: « I would rather not do that at all, but it is in the outline agreement. » The criticism of Agema has not been silent since then.
The VWS budget will be voted on next Tuesday.
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Minister Agema is difficult to explain cuts on care. ‘Why these choices, what are the figures? We want to answer ‘
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:format(webp)/s3/static.nrc.nl/images/gn4/stripped/data130958704-8d7694.jpg "American democracy does not die in the predicted darkness, but in broad daylight")
