In recent years, at a national level, confidence in government has fallen drastically and dissatisfaction with policies has increased. This is a worrying development and hurts overall confidence in politics. For CDA Hilversum, politics starts with the recognition of social initiative. People, neighbourhoods, sports clubs, schools, churches, mosques, healthcare institutions, cultural organisations, companies: they all have their unique contribution to society. The government will provide all those people and organisations with trust, so they may continue to do what they do best. The city council’s role is to serve. CDA Hilversum firmly supports the rule of law as an indispensable condition to protect society’s heart. The government is there to make living together possible for all of us. A reliable government, a council with integrity, sets clear boundaries and gives people security. The government will also fight injustice, and in doing so it must always act in a just manner. We govern with our head and with our heart and we serve society.

In the coming years, CDA Hilversum will focus on:

  • An honest, transparent and therefore reliable municipal organisation.
  • A servile government. The government is there for the residents and not the other way around.
  • Active cooperation and good, timely and understandable information for all residents and entrepreneurs.
  • Digital interaction accessible to everyone, including the elderly and people with disabilities. For residents who are not sufficiently digitally skilled, the municipality is also accessible offline (on paper) and physically.
  • Making maximum use of the brainpower, decisiveness and involvement of residents.
  • Giving priority to initiatives from society.
  • Preventing unnecessary objection procedures through serious and reliable participation processes
  • Over the next four years, a healthy balance must be maintained between the benefits and the costs so that no shortages arise
  • No further increase in municipal taxes, other than inflation adjustment. A moderate and predictable price increase brings calm.

Integrity - a reliable government

For CDA Hilversum, having a reliable board is a precondition for a liveable society. Integrity and transparency are paramount, always and everywhere. Administrative integrity must be beyond any doubt.

As CDA Hilversum , we want to distance ourselves from a governance culture which is based on power politics that belittle or intimidate the individual and aim at unequal power relations.­

In the relations between the municipal council and the municipal executive, the basic principle is that the municipal council is in all cases enabled to properly perform its framework-setting and monitoring role.

Society is central to us. The municipal government serves society and is there for residents and entrepreneurs in Hilversum. The government is there for the residents and not the other way around.

A reliable government gives people security and sets clear boundaries. The government is also there to fight injustice, it must be just. And the government is there for people who are vulnerable and dependent.

The municipal organisation must be clear, transparent and effective. Residents and entrepreneurs should receive active cooperation and good, timely and comprehensible information.

Integrity is the basis for policy and challenges. Residents and entrepreneurs must really be able to think along, participate in discussions and participate in decision-making throughout the entire process. It is also important to provide regular feedback to residents and entrepreneurs.

Participation – It is society's turn

In Hilversum, participation must be genuine participation, residents must be able to contribute ideas about solutions in their immediate environment or contribute to policy documents. After all, the municipality is there for its residents.

We want to make maximum use of the brainpower, decisiveness and involvement of residents. In doing so, we are expressly looking for opportunities to reach residents who are less vocal.

Giving priority to community initiatives should become normal. The municipality does not have to do everything itself. For as many projects as possible, the municipal organisation must ask itself whether it will get to work itself or whether ideas from the residents can be implemented.

We want local residents to be consulted during the planning phase (early phase) and there will be opportunities to contribute ideas. We do this to collect good ideas and to avoid objection procedures.

CDA Hilversum wants to focus on strengthening the neighbourhood coordinators (bucos) in order to increase accessibility to the municipality for residents. In this way, the neighbourhood is central: there is one point of contact for citizens and neighbourhoods and this point of contact has the power to persevere to get things done. Not just a symbolic signal booster, but a 'linking pin' between citizens, neighbourhoods and the municipality to specifically address questions, ideas and concerns

Municipal cooperation

The position of CDA Hilversum has long been that we are in favour of far-reaching administrative cooperation in the Gooi and Vechtstreek region, but we also note that sufficient social support is crucial for this.

Guaranteeing democratic legitimacy is of great importance. A municipal reorganisation should preferably not be imposed from above, but must be carried out from the bottom up. It is important to us that a reclassification only brings together municipalities that have a logical economic and cultural link with each other.

CDA Hilversum strives for a committed municipality that knows its residents, where the municipal council is accessible and which remains a reflection of the local population.

CDA Hilversum is in favour of (service-oriented) partnerships if democratic legitimacy is sufficiently guaranteed. Municipal councils - and therefore residents of municipalities - must have a real voice in regional cooperation.

Digitisation

The digital transition has an impact on social and economic developments. Not only are governments using more and more digital means to improve their services, enforcement and supervision, but digitisation is also indispensable for important social tasks, such as the transition to sustainable energy, better care and education or good accessibility. CDA Hilversum wants government and society to prepare for this in good time.

The comprehensiveness and interdependence of all aspects of the digital transition require a strong role from the government; for example in digital security and cybersecurity, also in the municipality's own tasks.

CDA Hilversum wants services to be offered close to residents and entrepreneurs and, where possible, digitally accessible.

At the same time, it is also very important for CDA Hilversum that information remains accessible to all residents of Hilversum. More than half of elderly people (75+) living independently do not feel sufficiently digitally skilled. This group often needs help using digital services. When interacting with the municipality available online, the internationally established guidelines for digital accessibility for the elderly must therefore always be taken into account. The same goes for people with disabilities. They should also not be hindered by the (digital) interaction with the government. For residents who are not sufficiently digitally skilled, the municipality is also accessible offline (on paper) and physically.

Increasing digital resilience is still one of the most important preconditions for digitisation. Digital resilience not only presupposes that digital security is in order, but also that people are able to respond adequately to cyber incidents. Hilversum, as a media city, is interesting for malicious parties and the risk of failure of digital services, processes or systems is becoming increasingly real.

To be prepared for all this, CDA Hilversum wants a clear and future-oriented policy plan for digitisation to be drawn up. This policy plan must also be used to increase the efficiency of the municipality. This does not only concern the accessibility of the municipal website, but also the clarity and options that remain as an alternative (such as counters and regular mail). CDA  Hilversum also wants to ensure that this plan is updated regularly and where necessary.­

Large-scale data files and smart algorithms are increasingly being used, for example in Smart City or to prevent poverty and debt. CDA Hilversum wants to ensure that there are no unforeseen side effects that affect privacy, non-discrimination, autonomy and human dignity.

Healthy Municipal Finances - How is Hilversum doing

Municipal finances often seem abstract to the resident. After all, how in-depth do you, as an average resident, have to be aware of this? And yet, it is an important subject, because every inhabitant contributes to these finances via taxes and also (justifiably) critically assesses how the money is spent within the municipality of Hilversum.

In recent years, the finances in Hilversum have been under pressure due to financial shortages within the social domain. In Hilversum, too, the costs for youth care were significantly out of step.  It was not until 2021 that the central government made additional money available to make up the shortfall. We believe it is important that the municipality has its housekeeping in order on a structural basis.

Our aim for the next four years is to maintain a healthy balance between income and expenditure and not to have any deficits. This is important for our residents because there are also new tasks ahead such as sustainability, greening and the energy transition. As residents of Hilversum, we will have to deal with this a lot in the coming years. We want the municipality to properly support residents with these developments, which require a lot of resources, for example subsidies, information and consultation.

Hilversum also has great ambitions when it comes to urban renewal and investing in the quality of the living environment. The starting point for this is adding social value to the Hilversum living environment. For example, we believe that the investments in the station area, area 1221 and the Arena Park are of great importance to keep Hilversum attractive for future generations in terms of living and working environment. We wholeheartedly support these projects, but we are well aware of the fact that they come with a hefty price tag that residents will have to pay.

Our starting point is that municipal taxes should not rise any further other than an inflation adjustment. A moderate and predictable price increase brings calm. The CDA will also remain cautious about increasing municipal taxes in the coming period.

We want to be transparent and careful about the expenditure of resources. We do not want Hilversum to take irresponsible financial risks for economic purposes. For example, we ensure that Hilversum does not borrow more money from banks than is justified according to recognised municipal financial standards. If these standards are exceeded, we will insist on a rapid reduction of the risk.

Urban Renewal

The large urban renewal projects in Hilversum will lead to more homes and thus generate income through the sale of land. The proceeds will be used to co-finance these projects and may not be used to balance the budget. There must be a structural balance between income and expenditure, which unfortunately has not been the case in recent years.

To co-finance the major projects, a lot of municipal real estate will be sold in the coming years. This is real estate that is not necessary for the tasks of the municipality. The proceeds will be put into an urban development reserve. We believe it is important that these resources are used exclusively to help shape urban renewal. That money may not be spent on goals that are not related to the investments in the city.

Finally, we think it is important that the municipality continues to allocate money for citizens' initiatives and to support local voluntary work and local associations. As far as the CDA Hilversum is concerned, the annual subsidies provided for this purpose should be maintained. Deficits must not be passed on to them.

 

Joint arrangements

Municipalities work together in many areas. This usually concerns tasks that they can perform together more effectively or efficiently.

The GNR (Goois Nature Reserve) was once established to protect the natural value of plots and thus prevent other uses. A well-equipped company has been set up to manage the areas. With the departure of Amsterdam and the province of Noord-Holland, the GNR can be managed in a regional context. The regional environmental aldermen can represent the interests of the GNR in their periodic meetings. Ultimately, it concerns plots in their own municipality.

In addition to our region, the TOMIN GROUP also serves Almere. Almere was once too small to operate its own TOMIN GROUP. Almere is now large enough for an independent TOMIN GROUP. Considering, among other things, regional identity, CDA Hilversum proposes to split the company into two regional units. The regional environmental councillors can simply include administrative matters concerning the TOMIN GROUP in their meeting schedule.

Landelijk/​Provinciaal

De twaalf provinciale afdelingen vormen de schakel tussen de gemeentelijke afdelingen en het landelijke bestuur.