EN: Visions for Maastricht: ‘A city for Young and Old’ with Harry Mevissen

Vote! 

Are you a European citizen, and are you registered in the municipality of Maastricht? Then, good news! You can vote in the upcoming local elections on March 18th! 

Our local coverage team invited candidates for interviews, and it aims to give keys to students to make their choice, without any editorial endorsement. 

In this episode, learn more about the Senioren(Stads)Partij (Senior(City)Party) with Harry Mevissen.

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Maastricht, like many other Dutch municipalities, has a wide range of local parties. One of them is the Senioren(Stads)Partij (Senior(City)Party), the SSP, whose name indicates a clear audience. Where the party’s loyalties truly lie is what we discussed with Harry Mevissen, municipal council member for the SSP.

The SeniorenStadsPartij & you

Maastricht Diplomat (MD): Why did you enter politics?

Harry Mevissen (HM): For a long time I’ve been a volunteer at the Foundation Social Security Maastricht - Heuvelland, where I guide citizens in dealing with the maze of subsidies and offices. Here, I was working with Frans Bastiaens, another member of SSP. When he asked me to join his party, I saw this as a chance to get a closer, shorter grip on things happening around us. I’d get the chance to take initiative. 

MD: How has your experience been as a member of the city council?

HM: After working as a citizen’s member of the council (advisory role, burgerraadslid in Dutch), I took over the spot of a leaving council member 4 months ago. Now, I’ve been able to submit motions and amendments, meaning I have more influence.

MD: Students and young people participate less during elections. Why do you think young people should vote?

HM: The previous turnout of 51% at the previous elections here in Maastricht gave me a bit of a shock. I thought: we can do this better. In my experience, parties keep themselves busy with profiling. The city should be governed, but the municipality is occupied with the wrong activities. Take as an example the wrongly parked bicycles. A focus on real issues will attract young voters.

MD: Many readers have probably never heard of your party. What kind of party is the SSP?

HM: We once started as the SeniorenPartij (Senior’s Party) but that changed over the course of the years. The party is now a party for all city residents, including the students.

MD: Does your party also have young members or do you have to be pensioned to be on the list?

HM: On the 5th spot we have a 30-year old. This is the first year that a young person is on our list, and we have more and more youngsters in the party.

MD: Isn’t it time for a name change in that case?

HM: If the name changes, the party will no longer be in first place on the kieslijst (Election list, the voting paper). That is equivalent to political suicide. Also in regards to recognition, a name change is undesirable.

MD: What is your party’s vision for the city?

HM: Maastricht was once a city that stood on its own. However, the university gave the city a more international outlook. Students should be able to see what a beautiful city Maastricht truly is, and the city can learn from the non-Dutch students too. Besides that, the city should learn to look over its borders. I always say: ‘The Maastrichtenaar only talks about his city, but the world does not stop existing outside the borders of the city.’

MD: Is your party left-wing or right-wing?

HM: No, no. I don’t recognize myself in that duality. I recognize that we do things which are both left and right. We’re a centrist party.

Experience in the municipal council

MD: Your party is currently the largest party in the municipal council of Maastricht. You’re also in the coalition. Are you satisfied with what you’ve achieved in the last 4 years?

HM: It is slow, but we are proud of giving the buurthuizen (neighbourhood community centres) new life. By having municipal council civil servants present in these buurthuizen, we strive to give citizens the feeling that the city hall is close to home.

Internationals and Students

MD: What does the Senior Party think of students in Maastricht?

HM: For me, it’s important to stay in contact with students. Personally, I am active in a fencing association, and meet many students, both Dutch and European. This keeps me active, and also in touch with the needs of young people in Maastricht. When people complain to me about students, I tell them: ‘weren’t you young once too?’ Thanks to students, Maastricht is connected to the broader surroundings [of Belgium and Germany].

MD: Is your party in contact with other cities in the Euregio?

HM: The city of Maastricht and the municipal council work together with other cities. Our party does not, but is open to future collaborations.

MD: Your party programme states that culture is important for the city, but does not state anything regarding Landbouwbelang (LBB). For many students, this is an important form of alternative culture. However, it’s now disappearing. What is your party’s position?

HM: There is going to be an alternative location for LBB. Already, permission has been granted to move to a new location in the Bessems building. This has also been decided with the students in LBB. I also understand that the city would like to build something new. 

MD: Why do you understand that?

HM: LBB is located in an area of the city that is ripe for new life. The Bassin should be transformed into a new touristic area of the city, to reduce the pressure on the Vrijthof and the Markt. The students [in LBB] are not being removed, but are being granted a new location. Nice new apartments and the music school will provide the city with a new look. For 25 years, LBB was tolerated, but their location now has a different purpose.

Maastricht: A social city.

MD: Every neighbourhood should have a ‘beating heart’, you say. How will this be achieved?

HM: My party aims to create meeting spots for everyone, young and old, student and non-student. This will be done by giving community centers more funding and new life. 

MD: Your programme states that ‘the strongest shoulders will have the heaviest load’. This implies more taxes for those who can afford them. Is that your plan?

HM: More taxes on those who can bear them is our aim. It will be a task for the civil servants to organise the finances, because we should prevent an income deficit in the municipality. There is a possibility for more income, I believe.

MD: How will you tackle poverty in Maastricht?

HM: Poverty in the Netherlands is caused by the tax authorities, the UWV (employer’s insurances organisation), and the health insurers that cost too much. We want to be the first Dutch city that ensures citizens don’t get fines, but a payment schedule instead. As Senior Party, we should fight citizens who struggle with debt, and for the homeless elderly and children. That it is possible that people live in poverty in the city of André Rieu and TEFAF is a disgrace. In Maastricht, we also have over 100 organizations that fight poverty, but there is no clear oversight. They don’t know each other, which means efficient poverty reduction does not take place. This can be changed too.

Housing

MD: Students in Maastricht often find it hard to find affordable housing. How does your party approach affordability?

HM: Not just students have this problem! We are currently researching if it would be possible to create stronger connections with Sittard and Heerlen, to reduce the pressure on Maastricht. The aim is to create a new ‘Randstad’ in South-Limburg.

MD: You want to make Maastricht an attractive place to live for students, especially after graduation. What is your plan of action?

HM: This is what the Brightlands-Campus is currently doing. This [campus] keeps knowledge and talent in the region. Of course, this needs housing too. The city should be inclusive, and preferably the city should build higher to create more housing.

Sustainability and the green transition.

MD: What are your plans to make Maastricht greener?

HM: The city is currently not heat-resistant enough. We need more trees, green, flowers. This should be done as much as possible, but only where there is potential. In the centre, for example, there are too many underground electrical wires and sewage pipes to realize more green. Besides that, making the city sustainable is a priority for our party, in line with national policies.

MD: Other parties want to make public transport free for people with a lower income. Do you support that?

HM: There have been proposals in this regard, yes. We want to look into options where public transport costs are reduced.

In Conclusion

MD: Why should an (international) student vote for the SeniorenStadsPartij?

HM: We stand for a city where young and old can live together. A city that realizes that the world does not stop existing outside the borders of Maastricht. That’s my priority.

Once again, thanks to Harry Mevissen for the interview.