Contents

Think beyond borders.

Amsterdam is facing significant changes. The corona crisis has exposed deep divides we can’t ignore. Divides between people whose income was affected and those able to survive with minor adjustments. It showed us the vulnerabilities in the social fabric of our city.

The clock is ticking. We need a fresh vision for the future and to break free of the worn- out patterns of the past. We cannot wait

for answers to urgent problems such as the climate crisis, the housing crisis and the growing inequality of opportunity. Amsterdam deserves politicians who think outside the box and are more concerned with Amsterdammers than with themselves. It deserves politics focused on long-term thinking and connecting. Politics thinking beyond its borders.

We are Volt. We believe that better cooperation is the only way to tackle the challenges of the 21st century. Volt has elected representatives in the European Parliament, the Dutch Parliament and in several European municipalities. With a specific, coherent European programme, we are the first party to connect all European cities and build bridges.

Volt wants the housing market to be more fair and accessible to people with lower and middle incomes. We want to build affordably and keep the city affordable for the future. We want Amsterdam to be CO2 neutral by 2040, ten years earlier than the European Green Deal proposes. The Amsterdam we see is an accessible, sustainable, thriving city that feels like home.

We want a society based on trust in local government that sees, hears and involves inhabitants in decisions that affect their lives. We want a city of equal opportunities and shared happiness, with a great diversity of people and cultures, united in the unique identity of Amsterdam.

Amsterdam is a child of Europe: a city of pioneers. A city of freedom, peace, good food, music, art, science, innovation and a colourful, shared history. We want a borderless Amsterdam that takes the best ideas from European cities and implements them here. An Amsterdam that develops new ideas and ways of doing things in the fields of climate, social equality and participation. A city that shares its knowledge with other Dutch and European cities. An Amsterdam that thinks beyond the city limits.

The new generation of politicians can‘t wait to get started. We can‘t wait to make the voice of Amsterdammers heard in the city and in Europe. We can‘t wait to represent the Volt voter in the city council with a positive voice.

Volt believes that Amsterdam has what it takes to emerge stronger from the current climate crisis. But we must dare to make choices and act. We’re facing a serious challenge in transitioning to a society in which sustainability is the norm.

Green Gallery

Whether it is hot and dry summer days or torrential rainfall in the autumn, the extensive greening of the city is the way to make the capital resilient to the effects of climate change. The municipality is already working hard to make a greener capital possible. However, Volt believes such a project can only succeed if everyone works towards the same goal.

With rising energy prices, it is now crucial to prevent precious heat from leaking out due to poor insulation. Energy poverty is

a growing problem and deserves the full attention of the municipality to make the heat transition more inclusive. Volt wants to work on the insulation of houses by motivating home owners, tenants and proprietors for insulation. As an example, we’ll employ transparent sustainability demands adjusted for financial capacity and supportive measures inspired by the British “Home Energy Saving Programme”.

A clean Capital

Ask Amsterdammers what annoys them most and rampant rubbish will be high on the list. The stench, vermin and unsightly appearance should be things of the past. We can also improve waste processing: let’s re- duce urban waste incineration to a minimum and make reuse the norm.

Safety & Security

A level playing field starts with clear rules. We want Amsterdam to remain an open and tolerant city. A city that effectively deals with intimidation, violence and crime. This requires an ongoing dialogue in society.

As far as Volt is concerned, the most crucial point in the debate about the Red Light District is to prevent the exploitation of sex workers and combat human trafficking. We want Amsterdam to cooperate with other European cities and parties to tackle networks that engage in human trafficking.

Volt aims to strike a balance between prosperity and welfare. Amsterdam’s trade history and commercial spirit has brought prosperity to the city. Yet, a city that is attractive to live and work in also requires mutual solidarity. Volt opts for a balanced policy that gives room to innovate without damaging the city’s social fabric.

At Home in the City

The housing crisis is felt in large areas of the Netherlands. Our parliamentary group is working hard to combat the situation at a national level. In addition, Volt believes that local action is needed to address the problems in the Amsterdam housing market. The city should take control of public housing. Housing is a right, not a luxury. We want Amsterdam to choose balance: solutions that make a difference for the groups most affected by the housing crisis and structural- ly ensure a fair, social and sustainable hou- sing policy for the future. Volt wants;

Future-proof Affordable Living

Due to the housing crisis, Amsterdammers with low and middle incomes keep missing out. Starters have become stagnant and exceptional situations - such as being forced to “temporarily” stay with your ex or “briefly” move back into your parents‘ house - seem to be the new norm. One way or another, the city must maintain and expand the number of affordable homes.

These houses should be built for Amsterdammers, not for project developers or real estate investors. We, therefore, support the proposed buy-out protection, which means that houses with a registered (WOZ) value of less than €512,000 may not be rented out for four years after the sale.

But how do new homes help if the rent is too high for many people? What is the point of the city council investing a lot of money, time and energy in realising new owner- occupied homes if they immediately become unaffordable for most Amsterdam residents the first time they are sold? The most important thing is that housing is affordable from day one and remains affordable after that. This is why Volt makes the following proposals.

Amsterdammers deserve the right to live their lives as they want. Volt wants an Ams- terdam where no one is left out and where you can count on having the same oppor- tunities to realise your dreams and build a future in your own way, regardless of your origin, orientation, level of education or gender.

A city where you can be yourself, where you are heard and seen, is a city you can call home. Amsterdam has a long tradition of

a great diversity of cultures and we must make sure that everyone feels welcome. This diversity is the basis of Amsterdam‘s culture. It also means feeling safe at home and in the street, at work and in public transport, in the pub or at the market. Tolerance is about more than just living and letting live; it is about becoming aware of the equality of all people.

Some Amsterdammers experience more inequality of opportunity than others be- cause of the color of their skin, their name or nationality. Simply put: racism. The experiences of these Amsterdammers deserve specific attention and solutions.

The challenge for us is to recognize and help the victims by revealing conscious and sub- conscious biases and especially challenge all kinds of racist behavior.

We also want to find new ways of making the hospitality and retail sectors more accessible to Amsterdam persons with disabilities, and making proposals to reduce menstrual poverty. We want the city council to take a leading role in starting or expanding programmes that motivate (young) women for jobs in the sectors that they are underrepresented in, such as the STEM- sectors (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics).

For Volt, the famous Amsterdam tolerance should be unconditional and high safety in the city the standard. Discrimination or exclusion, in any shape or form, is the only thing we should close our city gates to.

Amsterdam takes its responsibility in housing refugees. Volt supports this but also realises that the willingness to accommodate people in need is directly related to problems on the housing market. Solutions should therefore be seen in conjunction with the challenges on the housing market. After all, more living space, temporary or other- wise, also means more possibility to offer shelter.

In a prosperous city, there is no excuse for letting people sleep on the streets. Amsterdammers who have been trapped in homelessness for any reason deserve a chance to build a decent life.

Youth Care as a Springboard

After responsibility for youth care was transferred from the national government to the municipalities in 2015, shortages arose. These shortages are taking their toll on young people, especially now. Of the young people aged 18 to 25 years, 12% have mental health problems. Waiting lists are too long, suicide among young people has increased and specialist help is difficult to get access to.

Volt advocates well organised, accessible and affordable youth care for every young person. Investing in better care for our youth is an investment in the future of Amsterdam. Here too, prevention is better and is better and cheaper than fighting the symptoms.

In recent decades, Amsterdam has become a high-tech capital. We want to further support this development whilst allowing all citizens to equally take part in future advancements. This starts with access to re- liable resources, accessibility of the facilities provided by the municipality, the freedom to let innovative and smart mobility take you wherever you want to go, and an education system that enables all Amsterdammers to reach their full potential.

The Future of Amsterdam

Sharing knowledge is at the heart of a modern city. Allowing the next generation to develop is crucial for the future of Amsterdam. We want our children to become successful, happy and responsible members of society. Education is also important for integration. Therefore, we propose a series of pragmatic solutions to improve education in the city, including:

Accessible and in Motion

In 2019, Amsterdam decided that from 2030 no petrol, diesel or gas vehicles will be allowed in the city and from 2025 only zero-emission company cars, taxis, buses and mopeds. Volt supports the ambition for an emission-free Amsterdam. However, due to the short run-up to such a fundamental change of direction, there are possible risks in terms of personal finance, charging capacity in the city and the extra energy demand.

Volt believes public transport and smart mobility solutions are integral not just as an affordable alternative to cars, but as an essential part of a modern city. Accordingly, Volt wants to improve the accessibility of Amsterdam and its surroundings, through innovative and smart public transport connections in the city and from Amsterdam to the surrounding suburbs.

Great art challenges you and puts your empathy to the test. Art sharpens the mind. By creating, singing, writing, painting and rapping, creative Amsterdammers work on a common language and shared experiences. Our culture tells us who we were as Amsterdammers, who we are and who we can be- come.

A city that is world-famous for its cultural treasures must take care of them. We must take good care of our cultural sector, especially after the dramatic consequences of COVID-19. The municipality must get to know the current creative ecosystems and provide structural financial support where necessary to safeguard a lively, diverse Amsterdam culture for the future.

Politicians and administrators have to respond to changing circumstances with new policies. However, current politics too often disregards how new policies can dismantle or scale-down existing projects and programs.

Therefore, Volt demands an implementation paragraph for each new proposal in the city council that clearly states how the existing capacity, such as available staff or budget, is affected.

Best practices

Volt practices politics with an open mind. We draw our inspiration from policies that have already proven themselves in other cities. European cooperation makes our city stronger and Volt will continue to look for new solutions to Amsterdam‘s problems and share the best plans from Amsterdam with the rest of Europe. Future. Made in Europe.

Creative climate lessons from Spain, France and Switzerland.

The Green Gallery is inspired by Madrid, where work is underway to build a 75-km- long greenway around the city. Thereby, the Spanish capital aims to reduce temperatures in the city and cut greenhouse gas emissions.

The policy of turning off the lights on closed business premises is taken from France, where legislation has already made this energy-saving measure effective since 2013. Switzerland encourages the use of roofs with subsidies for green roofs. In Basel, about 40% of the roofs are in use to pro- mote biodiversity and climate adaptation.

The Viennese housing approach

Vienna is a pioneer in the housing market. About 60% of the inhabitants of the Austrian capital live in (subsidised) affordable rented accommodation. The city has expanded the zoning plan, thus ensuring much- needed liveability.

Citizen participation from Lisbon

The Portuguese capital has increased its participation from a bottom-up perspective, for example through Lisboa Participa, a project in which the city‘s residents can think and decide about the way the city invests.

European public transport solutions

In Copenhagen and Barcelona, extending metro or bus lines to the airport has had a positive effect on accessibility between the suburbs and the city centre. Brussels has good experiences in bringing public trans- port companies together to introduce combined tickets.

Swedish transparency

The EU is setting a good example with a lobby register, which we want to apply at a municipal level. In this way, we make decision-making in the city more transparent. From Sweden comes the model of active openness of the municipality‘s objectives and expenditure.