A record 13.4 million people are eligible to vote in this week’s Dutch general election, but more than a million are effectively disenfranchised, writes Robin Pascoe.

Political leaders have had plenty to say during the campaign about migrants of all types: refugees, low skilled “migrant workers”, international students and highly skilled “knowledge migrants”. Many of them are Dutch News readers.

Parties across the spectrum have plans to reduce the number of people coming to the Netherlands as refugees, to work in greenhouses and slaughterhouses, and to work at universities, in high-tech firms and in the myriad of Dutch start-ups, even though many of those sectors are struggling to recruit workers.

But the people at the blunt end of those decisions have no say in the process, even though some of them have been living, working and paying taxes in the Netherlands for decades.

In the run-up to the election, Dutch News asked all the main political parties for an interview. We wanted to ask about their ideas for the international community, on curbing immigration and on how the country’s “expats” and “migrant workers” contribute to the Dutch economy.

D66 leader Rob Jetten was the only one to say yes. The others – CDA. GroenLinks-PvdA, VVD and JA21 – did not respond, said they were too busy, or discreetly made it known that they weren’t interested because expats can’t vote.

That may well be the case, but that does not mean our elected representatives should ignore one million people. Democracy is about having a voice and being heard and about listening.

But those who wish to participate in Dutch society to the full – by voting for the government that spends their taxes – are stuck watching from the sidelines.

To vote, you need to be Dutch and unless you are over 65 or married long-term to a Dutch national, or you acquired Dutch citizenship before turning 18, you need to give up your original nationality. That, as everyone who has considered making that move knows, is a massive step to take – and can make it harder for you to “go back home”.

The Dutch attitude to dual nationality belongs in the ark. It harks back to a time before people moved around the world to work at will and set up home in another country, without giving up their old lives, family and friends.

But without reform, hundreds of thousands of people who have made the Netherlands their home are being excluded from the democratic process, while politicians talk about their usefulness to the economy, or how there are too many of them.

Fortunately, the local elections are not that far away. EU nationals and everyone who has lived in their town or city for at least five years can vote in that election. Then far more Dutch News readers will be able to cast their ballot.

Hundreds of thousands of taxpayers who are excluded from the national elections will be able to have their say on March 18. In Amsterdam, in The Hague, Amstelveen and Eindhoven at least 20% of potential voters are not Dutch.

In the Dutch News general election survey, 62% of respondents said they believed people who had paid tax for at least five years should be able to vote.

So which political parties will recognise the political power and the concerns of the million plus foreign voters next March?