THE HAGUE, 10/02/04 - Asylum Minister Verdonk has won the backing of the Lower House for the expulsion of around 26,000 asylum-seekers. Verdonk is however likely to allow a limited number of extra cases to remain in the Netherlands.

In yesterday's debate, the Christian democratic (CDA), conservative (VVD) and centre-left (D66) government parties supported the policy of the minister, who plans to expel the 26,000 rejected asylum-seekers and illegals in the next three years. They come from a group of around 28,000, some 2,300 of whom are allowed to stay under a one-off amnesty. Although they were rejected, they are receiving a residence permit because they waited for longer than five years for the result of their initial application (2,200 people) or because their situation is 'harrowing' (220).

The leftwing opposition parties considered that the number of 220 harrowing cases is much too low. The leftwing Greens (GroenLinks) and socialists (SP) want all 26,000 asylum-seekers to be allowed to stay, but there was no support for this, or for a labour (PvdA) motion demanding a wider scheme.

The minister did accede to the wish of the PvdA and CDA to look thoroughly once again at whether there are not more than 220 harrowing cases. If a return is "impossible or unreasonable," the minister said she would award a residence permit after all. But she was against a separate commission to do her work all over again, as D66 proposed.

Rejected asylum-seekers that can demonstrate that they really cannot go back, may stay, Verdonk repeated. The Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND) will in all cases go with the rejects to their embassies to arrange travel documents, she stressed.

Ahead of the debate, the Aliens Affairs Advisory Commission (ACVZ) unexpectedly produced unsolicited recommendations to the minister, resulting in the debate starting later than planned. Asylum-seekers who have been waiting for "any sort of decision" on their residence for seven years or longer and who have underage children should be able to stay providing they have a command of basic Dutch, in the commission's view.

Support for Verdonk's plans has risen again among the population. According to pollster Maurice de Hond, 61 percent back her. Earlier, approval of her expulsion policy dipped from 65 to 55 percent. De Hond attributes the rebound to the minister's resolute appearance in the media and the attitude of PvdA chairman Koole, who called on mayors not to cooperate with the expulsions.