Dutch politicians call new Brussels museum 'shameless'

As the long-awaited House of European History opened this weekend in Brussels, several politicians in the Netherlands and Flanders are taking the opportunity to express their disapproval. The House of European History aims to educate young people on the European project, but the politicians are not pleased with its being funded by the European Parliament, writes Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf.

"It's a shameless, pathetic form of propaganda," says MEP Olaf Stuger. MEP Marietje Schaake of the pro-European Democrats 66 party agrees, saying "a parliament should not finance a museum."

The House of European History contains a collection of more than 1,000 objects from 200 museums, all of which tell the story of European cultural heritage, from ancient times to today, including the recent Brexit ballots. The main goal, according to the museum's website, is to get visitors "thinking about the future of Europe".

In Belgium, members of Flanders' N-VA party also reacted displeased. "Of course we also want citizens to get to know the rich European history," said MEP Annelie Bossuyt. "But that's already perfectly possible in the Parliamentarium, some 350 meters further.”