The pressure is not just royal. Bart De Wever has already announced that, without an agreement at the end of the month, he could resign and concentrate on the mayorship of Antwerp and the presidency of the N-VA. Even if, at this stage, the Arizona captain still has the full confidence of the partner parties (MR, Les Engagés, Vooruit and CD&V).
Federal training: Bart De Wever extended in his mission… for the last time
Worst-case scenarios
However, in the absence of a concrete agreement on a multitude of points, including a budgetary framework, a tax reform, socio-economic measures, an overhaul of the labor market, a tightening of migration treatment, a refinancing of defense …the trainer could put his apron back on. The door would then be open to a complete reshuffling of the workforce. A new trainer could be appointed. Other actors, with other missions, could be summoned: deminers, explorers, conciliators… In the darkest scenarios, some mention the renewal of elections. But we’re not there.
If, on Tuesday, the differences between parties were still far from being ironed out, the Palace still allowed a “progress of discussions in the socio-economic field”. One of the main points remains the socialists’ request for a contribution.broadest shoulders“The Liberals are open, but with a certain number of guidelines, such as the rejection of new taxes.
Bosses as reinforcements
In this standoff, the MR receives a boost from employers’ organizations. Monday evening, the powerful Voka, the umbrella of Flemish employers, insisted on the need to defend “competitiveness and productivity”, a formula dear to the Reformers. Rudy Provoost, president of the network, also called for the arrival of a “determined government which makes targeted savings and does not opt for more taxes on wealth and entrepreneurship.” “We must not tax capital, we must activate it”he added Tuesday in The Free.
On Tuesday, it was the FEB which, in its political recommendations, also joined the MR’s line of defense. The Business Federation recalls that the industrial recession has continued for more than a year and a half and that competitiveness problems are leading to a fall in market shares in export markets. Therefore, it calls for reducing administrative burdens, cleaning up public finances and above all, reforming the labor market.
The FEB and the Voka “can also count on the MR to give more competitiveness to our entrepreneurs”John Hendrick, the Flemish spokesperson for the Reformers, tweeted on Tuesday. “For many Belgian and European companies, it’s now or never.”
