Noordoostpolder council member Wim van Wegen of Brede Horizon said the Dutch government paid too little attention to regions outside the Randstad. He linked political discontent in places such as Noordoostpolder to the decline of basic facilities, including public transport, schools and shops, and said Flevoland was missing from the government’s list of eleven designated “vital regions.”

Van Wegen also criticized the VVD over the long-running discussion about the Lelyline, a proposed railway connection from Lelystad through Emmeloord to Groningen. The project is estimated to require €15 billion, and the cabinet has asked former central bank governor Klaas Knot to reconsider how it could be financed. Van Wegen said he retained confidence in State Secretary Annet Bertram’s efforts to advance the project with external funding, although he said the VVD had shown no interest in it.