Digital decisiveness requires political vision and expertise – but where is it?
Martijn Koning, President CIO Platform Nederland
On October 29th, the Netherlands will elect a new House of Representatives. This is a crucial moment, because the digital transition affects all sectors of our society. From education to healthcare, from business to government. But politicians themselves must also become more digitally proficient. Unfortunately, a glance at the candidate lists does not inspire hope: digital expertise is scarce, and that is worrying.
CIO Platform Nederland has formulated its appeal to politicians in a clear agenda: For a digitallyresilientanddecisive Netherlands. We are calling for investment in digital sovereignty, cybersecurity, AI, digital skills and talent development, sustainability and a Minister for Digital Affairs with a strong mandate. Because digitisation is not a side issue – it is a key condition for a future-proof, prosperous and secure Netherlands within Europe.
What do the parties say?
An analysis of the (draft) election programmes reveals a mixed picture:
- PVV largely ignores digitisation. There is hardly any attention for AI, cybersecurity or digital infrastructure.
- GroenLinks-PvdA has devoted a separate section to digitisation and agrees with many of the points made by CIO Platform Nederland. For example, the party focuses on digital autonomy and market forces, investment in AI, cyber security and the inclusion of digital skills in education. GroenLinks-PvdA is the only one of these parties to advocate for a Minister of Digital Affairs and a “Digital Accountability Act”.
- CDA does not have a specific section on digitisation, but AI and other topics are mentioned here and there. For example, CDA wants to invest in digital autonomy, a European chip sector and an AI factory. The party advocates for an “AI commissioner”, but does not mention a Minister of Digital Affairs. In addition, attention is paid to embedding digital ethics and practising resilience.
- VVD is strongly committed to AI and technological investments, with plans for AI hubs and an AI factory. Digital security receives a lot of attention, and the importance of education for the digital economy of the future and for improving government is also mentioned. There is no mention of a Minister for Digital Affairs.
The (draft) election programmes of the other parties present a mixed picture in terms of their plans for digitisation. In general, the subject does not receive much attention. A positive exception to this is Volt, which does place a strong emphasis on this issue.
- Volt presents a pan-European programme with a separate section devoted to digitisation. AI is discussed in many places. Investments in ethical digital technology must be addressed at European level, with the Netherlands as a pioneer. Digital dependency must become measurable and there is a strong focus on knowledge development in education, government and business. Volt advocates a Ministry of Digital Affairs and pays a lot of attention to sustainability.
Digital technology affects everyone – including politicians.
What is striking is that many parties recognise the importance of digitisation, but its political translation is (too) often limited to isolated measures. Only a few parties advocate structural management via a Minister for Digital Affairs. And even more worrying: the candidate lists that have now been announced lack people with demonstrable digital expertise. Too many of the regular participants in the debates of the Digital Affairs Committee of Parliament are too low on the candidate list, if they are on it at all. Meanwhile, digital technology has become interwoven with all policy areas, and knowledge of it is necessary to adequately monitor the Cabinet's policy.
As CIO Platfom Nederland, we call on the political parties and their members to take digitalisation seriously. Not only in their programmes, but also in the composition of the House of Commons! Because without digital competence in politics, the Netherlands will lag behind in a rapidly changing world.
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