Doing politics is also making money. Political parties receive money from their political faces through the remittance scheme. And that is not only the solidarity arrangement of the SP.
Jimmy Dijk is very proud of the remittance arrangement within his party, the SP in Groningen for which he has been a councilor for 12 years.
He can explain this pride on the basis of what he just experienced when he was on a neighborhood visit to Hoogkerk, in the rat-infested Halmbuurt. There, the young father Alberto Henar, also known as rapper Raw Diamond, approached him. He had made a rap about Hoogkerk, about the rat problem, about the neighborhood where he lives.
Richest political party in the country
,,He let me listen on his phone, very cool. He wanted to make a video clip for it and asked me if I could help with that. Of course, I said. Because at the SP we have a media team with good cameras that can make sharp videos. This is what our party can do”, says Dijk.
Yes, his party is the richest political party in the country, thanks to the remittance scheme, aka solidarity scheme, that has been in effect for years for ministers, members of parliament, councilors and municipal councilors.
As a councilor in Groningen, Dijk would earn 1500 euros per month, were it not for the fact that the SP is his party. He gets 500 euros himself, the SP collects the other 1000 euros. Fine, says Dijk. “Isn’t it ridiculous that a councilor gets 1500 euros for a side job? That gives such a distance to what ordinary people earn. I hear councilors talking about it like it’s their job, it’s not. It’s a side job, isn’t it, it’s something you do in addition to your regular work that already earns you a salary.”
No job hunters
The solidarity arrangement makes the SP strong, says Dijk. “We are not dependent on large, anonymous donors or companies that want to have a say with their money. Through this arrangement we keep job hunters out.”
Yes, says Dijk, there are people in the city council because of the financial compensation.
Anyone who thought that only the SP has a contribution arrangement is wrong. Even the VVD, always a fervent opponent of the transfer for which the SP has its envoys sign, considered three years ago to have its 335 parliamentarians transfer 1000 euros a year to the party coffers. It has remained a plan for the time being.
But GroenLinks has also had a national scheme for administrators and representatives for many years. GroenLinks Groningen mentions it neatly in its search for a new alderman: 13 percent of the salary goes to the party coffers.
,,That has been customary since 1990”, says chairman Arjen Helmantel of GroenLinks Groningen department. “The principle is that the strongest shoulders carry the heaviest burdens, so councilors pay less than aldermen.”
He sees the logic in it. “The national party helps everywhere with support and campaigns. If you have a nationally well-functioning organization, every alderman and every councilor benefits from it.”
“It is reasonable to pay part of your income to the party that allows you to be a candidate for that party,” says Gerrit Voerman, who is professor of development and functioning of the Dutch and European party system at the University of Groningen. According to him, the remittance arrangement is the most natural thing in the world, especially for parties to the left of the middle. For other parties, the contribution is either much lower (with the CDA and the PvdA 3 percent) or voluntary. In addition to membership fees, donations and government subsidies, the remittance scheme is one of the sources of income of a political party.
Dijk has no problem with the fact that he ‘leaves 1000 euros a month’
According to Voerman, it becomes complicated if the payment takes on a strongly compulsory character, as is the case with the SP. ,,With the SP you have to sign for that payment, otherwise the whole party will not go on. That conflicts with the independent position of representatives of the people, as stated in the constitution.” In the past, this has led to elected SP members separating from the party.
Jimmy Dijk has no problem with the fact that he ‘leaves’ 1000 euros a month. How many hours a week does he spend on his council work? “It’s hard to say, I think 10 to 12 o’clock, but now at election time of course more.”
He says: ,,You have file eaters, who dig through all the pieces from cover to cover. I am in favor of meeting as short as possible and not spending all your time reading files. Then you can talk to the voters.”
He concludes: ,,Our job is to be among and with the people. Such a boy, Raw Diamond, he has no money to make a video, but our municipality does have a quarter of a billion euros left for a new pop temple.”