Does Drenthe need five deputies or can the province manage with four? It seems like a somewhat insignificant question, yet Member of Parliament Anry Kleine Deters (D66) posed that Wednesday during a debate about the formation of a new provincial executive. The short answer was that there is enough work to do for five. Nevertheless, there is reason for further consideration.
Until 2019 there were four deputies and then the work was also finished. After the elections in that year, the current team was expanded with Hans Kuipers of GroenLinks. The five took more hay on the fork. The province became more involved in housing, poverty reduction and other aspects of social policy. In the years before that, the province had put its involvement on the back burner.
Progressive character
It was a political choice to give the province a heavier role in the social field. GroenLinks, together with the PvdA, thus gave the board a more progressive character. And of course there is also a lot to do in Drenthe when it comes to combating poverty, low literacy and loneliness. But it is really the municipalities that have the lead in this. They concern social assistance benefits, training of the long-term unemployed, assistance to people with a disability and so on. Perhaps it is more effective to offer them more money, powers and scope than for the province to also get involved.
It may seem a bit silly to note that deputies are expensive guys, with their salary of over 9000 euros gross per month and all the bells and whistles that go with it. But it is in an organization just like in a family with growing children: the management must set a good example. If your child is too fat and needs to move more, it is wise as a parent not to sit on the couch all evening, but to exercise with your child.
Tax dollars
Citizens want to see that the government handles their tax dollars well. Civil servants must therefore work efficiently and change their working methods if a new reality demands this. That is why there are often reorganizations, most recently at the provincial government building in Assen. These are sometimes accompanied by painful measures. Little Deters just has to hold his own for a while. It is advisable that the new coalition parties explain once again why they really need that fifth deputy.