Jeroen Dijsselbloem – Eindhoven’s mayor for nine months now – sees his city as a unique link in the European desire to remain independent of the U.S. and China. He reveals this in an interview with Binnenlands Bestuur. In his work, he says in the interview, he is primarily concerned with what the Eindhoven region can do for Europe.
“America and China are calling the shots and are in a major trade conflict, and Europe must be careful not to be crushed by its dependence. Do we still have our technology in our hands? Will we keep developing new technology, or will it only come from China and America soon? Few places in Europe have a role to play in this. This region does have that position. We have 5 to 6,000 technology companies here. What ASML is doing is unique. The Eindhoven region can be crucial in keeping Europe from being dependent on China and America.”
G4
Dijsselbloem also said he finds the question of when Eindhoven may officially join the four big cities of the Netherlands not interesting. “What we have to offer here transcends whether we should belong to the G4. I don’t find that interesting anymore. That’s not meant arrogantly. I grant Amsterdam and Rotterdam the very best. We work together on projects, but I don’t necessarily need to belong to such a club. Eindhoven is doing very well, and we don’t need Amsterdam for that.”
Brainport
That does apply to the 21 municipalities that make up Brainport. Dijsselbloem’s predecessor suggested turning them into three municipalities to keep it all manageable. That is no longer on the agenda. “The intention to arrive at three or four municipalities in the region is completely gone. I’m not into it, it doesn’t interest me either. But still, cooperation has to improve. We only solve our problems together. Regional cooperation needs to be much more ambitious and implementation-oriented. I want to cooperate, but effectively. That is also why I am touring the region. I’m going to the surrounding municipalities because that way, you prevent it from becoming a contradiction between the villages and the city. I don’t believe in that contradiction in this region. Residents’ concerns in the villages are the same as in the city.”
Read the entire interview (in Dutch) at ‘Binnenlands Bestuur‘
Related Posts
