Volt on public safety

Volt wants to act against all forms of extremism, relying on prosecution, prevention, victim protection and international cooperation. Police and the courts are to get more resources, and penalties for hate crime are to rise.

Volt wants to fight extremism. Extremism means people reject democracy and often want to end it by force. Police and courts should get more staff and money. Hate crimes should be punished more harshly. Schools should teach young people about the dangers. Victims should get help.

Politically motivated crimes are to be reported in a uniform way nationwide, and a central information pool is to document extremist networks. Police and the judiciary get specialized units, more staff and funding, and training. Education programs in schools, youth centers and communities, along with long-term funding for civil-society initiatives, are meant to prevent radicalization. Deradicalization programs and exit assistance are to prevent relapses. Regional contact points are to offer victims psychological support, legal advice and emergency aid, and cooperation with international partners is to grow against cross-border networks.

Volt wants to make Europol a European police force in its own right, with its own enforcement powers. The EU treaties would be amended for this purpose. The platform argues that organized crime and terrorism operate across borders.

Europol is the police agency of the EU. Today it cannot arrest anyone itself. Volt wants to change that. Europol should become a real police force for Europe. The EU Parliament should oversee it.

The EU treaties would be changed to set out Europol's powers clearly. Regional offices would operate independently of national police forces. An oversight committee would make Europol accountable to the EU Parliament, and people would have effective legal remedies against its actions. Europol would also set up a contact point to coordinate the protection of critical infrastructure within Europe. National security agencies would work together more closely, for instance through a joint plan against terrorism and espionage.

Volt wants to relieve the police of tasks outside their core role. At the same time, states and municipalities would get help recruiting more staff for police and public order offices. The platform points to heavy workloads and large amounts of overtime.

The police have a lot of work. Volt wants to take some tasks away from them. Other offices should do these tasks. There should also be more police officers. Training should become more attractive for that.

As examples of tasks to hand over, the platform names dog tax checks and prisoner transport. States and municipalities would be supported in recruiting, including by making training more attractive. In the platform's view, overload and staff shortages put the quality of police work and public safety at risk.

Volt wants to give the police modern technology and strengthen cybercrime units in the police and the justice system. At the same time, EU-level standards for digital fundamental rights would apply, especially for the use of state trojans. The platform cites the rise in online crime as the reason.

There is more and more crime on the internet. Volt wants to give the police better technology. This includes cameras worn on the body, called bodycams. There should be more experts fighting internet crime. The EU should set rules to protect basic rights.

Bodycams, reporting systems, and analytics tools would be used more widely in police work. The Code of Criminal Procedure would be amended with rules on the proper use of bodycams. Server capacity and IT security systems would be expanded. The future use of AI-supported programs would be reviewed with their risks in mind. For state trojans, meaning software that secretly accesses devices, EU-wide fundamental rights standards would be set. Administrations at all levels would receive resources to protect sensitive personal data.

Volt wants to add staff to special units fighting organized crime and to check imported goods systematically. The handling of criminal cases would be fully digital. In the platform's view, organized crime threatens democracy and the rule of law.

Volt wants to act more strongly against criminal gangs. Special units should get more staff. Goods from abroad should be checked more closely. Police and prosecutors should work digitally. This should make cases faster.

Special units at the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA), at customs, and in the states would get more staff. Security agencies would cooperate better through digitization. Imported goods would be checked systematically, for example with digital systems in ports. The path from filing a report to the prosecutor's office would become fully digital. The discretionary prosecution principle, under which authorities may decline to pursue minor cases, would be widened so that police can use their resources in a more targeted way.

Volt wants a police law that applies equally in all German states. Training, equipment, and funding of the police forces would also be aligned. The platform expects more effective law enforcement and equal protection in every region.

Today each German state has its own police law. Volt wants one law for all of Germany. Training should be the same everywhere. All police forces should have the same modern equipment. Money should also be shared more evenly.

A common law would standardize rules and procedures across all states. Standards for police studies and training would be made uniform. Police units would receive modern equipment and technology under a single national standard. Funding for the state police forces would be brought into line with one another. All police agencies would also use the same case management system.

Volt wants stronger protection for places of worship and more support for religious communities. The platform points to growing threats and hate crimes, especially against Jewish and Muslim communities.

Volt wants to protect churches, synagogues and mosques better. Jewish and Muslim communities are often threatened. Campaigns should reduce prejudice. The communities should get more help from the state.

Protection of religious sites is to be expanded. Awareness campaigns are meant to reduce prejudice against religious groups. Communities would also receive more support through cooperation between the state and civil society. According to the platform, the goal is to strengthen freedom of religion.

Volt wants to expand independent complaints offices, require training for security forces and make the police and judiciary more diverse. In the platform's view, unfair treatment by authorities undermines trust in public safety and the courts.

Some people experience racism from the police. Volt wants to act against this. There should be more independent offices for complaints. Police officers should take training courses. More kinds of people should work in the police and the courts.

Independent complaints offices are to be expanded. Careers in the police and judiciary should become more attractive to members of underrepresented groups, for example through inclusion and accessibility measures. Security forces would receive mandatory training to recognize and avoid unconscious discrimination.

Volt wants to reach young offenders early with prevention programs and expand care for unaccompanied refugee minors. Caregivers would get more resources, and more people would be recruited for volunteering and social work.

Volt wants to help young people who have committed crimes. The help should come early. Young refugees without parents should also get better care. Caregivers should have enough resources. More men should work in social jobs.

Care capacity is to grow and long-term integration is to be supported. Information about volunteering would be expanded to attract more helpers. Men would be specifically encouraged and trained for social work. Paid and volunteer caregivers would receive enough resources to provide good support.

Volt wants to improve the draft KRITIS-Dachgesetz (umbrella law on critical infrastructure) and use it to implement EU requirements on the resilience of critical infrastructure. Responsibility for protecting it would be centralized at the Federal Office for Information Security (BSI).

Critical infrastructure means important facilities, for example for power and water. Volt wants to protect these facilities better. A law should be improved for this. One agency should be in charge of protection. This agency is called the BSI.

A revised draft of the KRITIS-Dachgesetz would implement EU Directive 2022/2555. The cost-benefit assessment, the definition of responsibilities, and uniform reporting and security rules are to be reworked. IT security and physical protection would be considered together, with processes examined from end to end. The platform justifies this with protection against physical and digital threats and a reliable supply of essential services to the public.