Paul Depla

Paul Depla has been mayor of Breda since March 2015. As mayor, he is committed to make the city of Breda a green, welcoming city that thinks outside her borders. And believes we need to recognize that even a captivating city must evolve to retain its charm and promote sustainability. Collaboration with its residents is essential in this process. In Breda there is no place for undermining and drug crimes. He therefore puts a lot of energy into disrupting and preventing the drug industry. In this context, he is also an advocate of the regulation of cannabis. As chairman of the Dutch G40 city network he is intensively involved with the complex issues that play a role in the 40 largest cities of the Netherlands. He brings the interests of the cities to the attention of central government and national politics. Before coming to Breda, he was mayor of Heerlen for 5 years and alderman in Nijmegen for 10 years. Paul Depla studied sociology and political science and obtained his PhD at Tilburg University with a study into the renewal of local democracy.