After ten hours of debate, the law allowing home entries to arrest undocumented migrants is passed

The Chamber approved the bill drafted by Asylum and Migration Minister Anneleen Van Bossuyt (N-VA) and Justice Minister Annelies Verlinden (CD&V) shortly after 5 am on Friday, Bruzz reports. The plenary debate had lasted all night, about ten hours according to RTBF and La Libre. On Thursday afternoon the left-wing opposition had asked for the vote to be postponed because of the government crisis, but the request was rejected.

The law allows the Immigration Office to ask the police to arrest a person without a right of residence inside a home with a view to deportation. According to La Libre, that person must refuse to cooperate with their return, and there must be reasonable grounds to consider them a danger to public order or national security. An investigating judge must give prior authorisation, and entries are only permitted between 5 am and 9 pm. At the request of Les Engagés, additional safeguards for minors were added, Bruzz writes.

All members of the majority voted in favour except Xavier Dubois (Les Engagés), who was absent, according to RTBF. Anders also backed the bill, while Vlaams Belang abstained, arguing that the text has been watered down too much. PS, PVDA, Ecolo-Groen and DéFI voted against. Lawyers, investigating judges and the federal police had earlier raised objections to the vague definition of the danger criterion. MR MP Denis Ducarme referred to some forty people on OCAM's lists and around ten entries a year, according to La Libre.

Groen group leader Matti Vandemaele drew a comparison with the US immigration agency ICE, which Van Bossuyt called misleading. Several mayors, including Mohamed Ridouani (Vooruit) in Leuven, had already said they oppose home entries in their municipalities. A similar bill was withdrawn in 2017 after large protests; the new version adds the danger criterion, La Libre notes.