2019 was a year of ‘unprecedented’ local council collapses

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At least 126 local authority aldermen and women lost their jobs last year as city and town council coalitions collapsed, according to new research published on Thursday.

The tally, made by local authority information platform DeCollegetafel and commissioned by the civil servants’ magazine Binnenlands Bestuur, shows 2019 was the worst year for aldermen losing their jobs since 2002, when a new law divided administrative and executive tasks in local councils.

A further 75 aldermen stepped down in 2019 because they accepted a post as mayor, or for health reasons.

The magazine said there were ‘an unprecedented number’ of 26 coalition splits last year, which it chalks up to ‘unwillingness and ineptitude when it comes to making agreements’.

Financial problems also contributed to the large number of aldermen leaving, as were disagreements resulting from the formal division between aldermen and local council members, which usually hinge on questions of authority, the magazine said.

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