European Commission pushes Netherlands to expropriate farmers
The European Commission advised the Netherlands to forcibly buy out farmers in the nitrogen crisis.
The failed leader of the Labor Party (PvdA) Diederik Samsom, who is now a high-ranking European bureaucrat gave that advice to Ministry of Agriculture, Nature, and Food Quality officials during a meeting in November.
Mandatory buyouts of farmers are a very sensitive topic in Dutch politics.
Farmers’ party BBB, who will soon be the biggest party in the Senate after last week’s massive victory in the provincial elections, is vehemently against forced expropriation, as is a majority in parliament.
The Netherlands’ current nitrogen policy has mandatory buyouts as the last available option.
But the European Commission thinks forced buyouts are the best way out of this crisis. The European Commission is quite strict about the voluntary buyout scheme but more lenient when it comes to forced expropriation.
When asked about his conversation with the Agriculture officials, Samsom said that he only pointed out the various European rules on expropriation and buyouts.
The choice between the two instruments based on other considerations is, of course, left to the Member States.