Police officers and unions ask new coalition parties for more money

In a joint letter addressed to the new coalition parties a collection of representatives of police officers said they need more money to continue to be able to do their jobs. This comes after the PVV, VVD, NSC, and BBB stated in the coalition agreement that the police must be seen more often in the neighborhoods. The letter was sent by the leadership of the National Police, the Central Works Council, and four police labor unions.

"A condition for realizing the ambitions stated in the coalition agreements is the stable financing of the police," they wrote. They are asking for 400 million euros in total. This amount will be split into two parts: 200 million will go to treating post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSS), a suitable rearrangement of the early retirement scheme, and ending the ongoing police staff shortages.

In addition, the police corps leadership, the works council, and unions want another 200 million euros to make the police "future-proof" by renewing the systems and training in digital development.

The police say that if the money is not given, hard decisions will have to be made: "Will we do less work on stopping organized crime, or will we be even less present in the neighborhoods?"

The coalition parties are freeing space to ensure that the police do not have to care for mentally confused people and that care is given to other institutions. "We have ideas about this that we would like to bring to the coalition parties before they finalize the coalition agreement," the letter's signees add.

The main points of the coalition agreement show that the intended Cabinet wants to spend 300 million on the whole legal chain: police, prosecution, and safety services.