SPD parliamentarians and city association chairman visit Bocholt's administrative leadership

Nadine Heselhaus, SPD member of the Bundestag for the Borken constituency, met with Bocholt's mayor Thomas Kerkhoff in Bocholt's administration building on Thursday to exchange experiences and information. Heselhaus was accompanied by the Bocholt SPD member of state parliament Nina Andrieshen and the chairman of the Bocholt city association Tim Schülingkamp. Treasurer Jennifer Schlaghecken took part on behalf of the city administration.

Heselhaus and Andrieshen reported on their everyday parliamentary life in Berlin and Düsseldorf respectively and enquired with Bocholt's city leadership about important projects and concerns in Bocholt. Mayor Kerkhoff and treasurer Schlaghecken made it clear that adequate funding is the basis of municipal efficiency and that this should be supported by the federal and state governments. A bureaucratic simplification in connection with state funding programmes is also desirable from the perspective of municipalities, as Kerkhoff noted: "Let go of the golden reins' and give us municipalities more room for manoeuvre."

The round table agreed to remain in regular dialogue.

Background

Having grown up in Düsseldorf, the Borken district and her home town of Raesfeld have become Nadine Heselhaus' adopted home. The qualified public administrator worked as a financial auditor at the NRW Municipal Audit Office. She has been politically active since 2007. Before becoming a member of the Bundestag in 2021, she was a member of the Borken district council. As a member of the Bundestag, Nadine Heselhaus is a member of the committees for Finance and Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection.

Nina Andrieshen from Bocholt has been active in local politics in her home town since 2011. The trained nursery school teacher moved up to the NRW state parliament at the beginning of November 2021 via the SPD state list to replace a departed SPD parliamentarian.

Tim Schülingkamp, together with Theresa Schuurmann, has been at the head of the SPD city association in Bocholt since the end of November 2021.