I amsterdam - Mayor: Job Cohen

Integrated Security Policy
Co-ordinates security policy across the College of Mayor and Aldermen, encouraging members to pursue it actively within their own areas of responsibility. Harmonises all responses to security threats.

General Affairs
Register Amsterdam, the City Archive, the City Ombudsman, project services and other general matters.

Personnel and Organisation
Charged with making the City of Amsterdam a modern and appealing employer which offers good primary conditions of employment and secondary benefits such a childcare scheme, flexible working hours, good career prospects and training programmes.

Administrative System
The system of city boroughs, regional co-operation, collaboration between the four main Dutch cities, referendums and so on.

Communications
Amongst other things, this covers the following departments.

• Press Office: Publicising city policy through such media as newsletters, press releases, press conferences and interviews.
• Media: Public information systems, the website www.amsterdam.nl, the intranet, the free newspaper Amsterdam.nl, teletext and internal publications.
• External Relations: City marketing and the organisation or supervision of state visits, official receptions, conferences, events and so on.
• Public Information: Managing information for the public about large-scale events and projects, such as Queen’s Day, the Amsterdam Marathon, major road closures and so on.

Legal Affairs
Advises city officials and municipal departments, services, corporations and enterprises on legal matters. Deals with objections and appeals. Represents the local authority in legal proceedings. Specialisations: privatisation, administrative law, private law, privacy policy, criminal law, European tenders and city projects.

International Relations
International policy focusing upon developing countries. For example, the contacts with Beira (Mozambique) and Managua (Nicaragua), and with the original homelands of large groups of Amsterdam residents, including Surinam, Turkey and Morocco. Also, relations with the ten new members of the European Union in Central and Eastern Europe.