The Dutch Election 17 November 2006 Yosiane White Hester Vogels Niels van Andel Arno van de Bovenkamp Riaan Zoetmulder

Outline During this presentation several Dutch citizens will say who they voted for and why, during the Dutch election on the 17th of November They will explain which policies they think are important and if those policies are on a European or a local scale. We will give short summaries of the manifestoes of the chosen parties and give the most popular coalition for the new government.

Which political party did you vote for? Marjolein van der Valk(MV): PvdA Ragnhild Vogels(RV): PvdA Ben Vogels(BV): PvdA Saba Sarfraz(SS):PvdA Dorien Van de Bovenkamp(DB):PvdA Margriet van Andel(MA):PvdA Feiko van Andel(FA):PvdA Henk van de Bovenkamp(HB):SP Steve White(SW): Groenlinks Eric Zoetmulder(EZ):D66

Why did you vote for that party? MV: PvdA looks after the social issues in the society. RV: The party's policies with which I agree most are those of PvdA. BV: I think the more social policies of PvdA are critical. SS: I voted PvdA because I feel there is a need to balance the right wing policies of CDA, D66 and VVD. DB: I think we need a social government with PvdA. MA: I prefer a social government. FA: Holland needs more social policies. HB: I agree with the SP's policy of reducing poverty. SW: I voted Groenlinks because environment is the biggest problem in the world today. EZ: D66 wants to change the Dutch politics completly.

Which policies do you think are important? MV: Better health services, lower taxes for the poor, higher taxes for tthe rich. RV: More money for health services, better Dutch economy, a policy for refugees in Holland, keep up our good reputation for education. BV: Money for health services, keep up educational standards, one Europe. SS: Social policies. DB: Economy, safety, human rights and more money for the poor. MA: Turkey in the EU, money for the poor and less mortgage interest deduction. FA: No discrimination and fight against poverty. HB: Smaller differences between rich and poor. SW: Save the environment, use less fossil fuels and more sustainable energy, such as wind energy. EZ: A more democratic government.

Are the policies more important for Holland or for Europe? MV: The health services policy and the taxes policy are important for Holland. RV: The education, health services and refugee policies of PvdA, are important for Holland. BV: The educational standards and health services policies of PvdA, are important for Holland. SS: There should be more social policies in Holland, but the policies of the EU should be more social too. DB: The economy, safety and money for the poor are policies for Holland, the only PvdA policy I think is important is human rights. MA: PvdA’s policies on mortgage interest deduction and money for the poor are Dutch policies, the policy on Turkey joining the EU is a European policy. FA: PvdA’s no discrimination and fight against poverty policies are Dutch, European and worldwide. HB: Smaller differences between rich and poor is for PvdA a Dutch policy but also a worldwide problem. SW: The environmental policies of Groenlinks are important for Holland, the EU and the rest of the world. EZ: D66 says that Dutch government, as well as the EU, should be more democratic.

Do other people influence your voting intentions? MV: No. RV: No, I’m not influenced by others. BV: Well, it depends on their opinions. SS: No, I don’t care what others vote for. DB: If someone can explain why, then I might reconsider. MA: No, I vote for who I think is right. FA: No. HB: Yes, I’m easily influenced. SW: No, I make up my own mind, depending on the party's policies. EZ: No, It’s my vote, not someone else's.

Who would we vote for? Now we will show who we would vote for, if we could vote. We will answer the same questions to those on the previous 5 slides. Hester and Yosiane would vote for PvdA because they think we need more socialist parties in the government. The policies they think are important are: environment, peace, good economy, animal rights and education. These policies are mainly important for the whole world. A good economy and education are important for Holland. Hester and Yosiane’s voting intentions are not easily influenced by others. Niels, Arno and Riaan would vote for CDA because they think CDA have done a great job running the country for the last few years. The policy they think is most important is a good economy. This policy is important for Holland and for the rest of the world. Niels, Arno and Riaan are not easily influenced by others unless very good arguments are used.

PvdA manifesto summary Children should have equal chances to develop in our society. We must invest more in education. There should be work for everyone. The differences between rich and poor should be reduced. Increase number of jobs in health services by Respect for each other: reduce anti-social behaviour. Everyone should integrate: no more waiting lists for language courses. AOW rises with the salaries. Invest in sustainable energy. More affordable housing to rent or buy. Invest €1.8 billion in regeneration of cities. Better cooperation between EU and Holland. Reduce bureaucracy. International cooperation on trade, human rights, security and globalisation.

SP manifesto summary Better democracy between government and citizens. Share the money more evenly between the rich and the poor. Improve health services. Safety: more money for rehabilitation of prisoners. Keep up high educational standards. Build more houses and invest more in public transport. Invest in agriculture and countryside and use more sustainable energy. Encourage sport, protect heritage and modernise media. Assist in the development of children, give more help to pensioners and take handicapped people seriously. Avoid segregation and help refugees. Better cooperation between EU and Holland. Improved balance sheet, pension increases with salaries and a fairer fiscal policy.

Groenlinks manifesto summary Help poor countries and improve cooperation in Europe. Respect refugees and work for a safer world. Maintain high reputation in education. Protect the environment and animal welfare. Think of the future: more sustainable energy. More jobs and increase unemployment benefit. Improve health services. Stricter punishments for criminals, less bureaucracy in police forces. Legalise soft drugs. Invest in art and culture. Work for a prosperous future.

D66 manifesto summary €5 billion for better education. AOW from 67 years instead of 65. 1% of the government’s budget for culture. Abolish performance contract for police Abolish identification duty No underage refugees in prison €500m extra for public transport Abolish thinking time before abortions Pre-natal screening in basic health insurance Reorganise tax system Abolish agriculture subsidies €300m extra to buy nature reserves

Most popular coalition We asked all our parents which coalition they would like in the government. The most popular coalition was CDA, PvdA and Christen Unie. This coalition has a big left wing party and a big right wing party which means there are not only right of left wing parties in the government. All the people we questioned agreed this would be the best coalition but queried whether it would work out. CDA and PvdA are not best of friends so it could be a problem, them working together. But it’s worth trying.

Conclusion This is the end of our presentation on the Dutch election which took place on the 17th of November As you have seen, Yosiane and Hester would vote for the same party as their parents, while Niels, Arno and Riaan would not. When it comes to voting everyone has their own personal reason to choose a particular party. We hope you found the opinions interesting.