The king began his second day of political consultations after the elections this Tuesday morning. He will receive in turn the presidents of the PS, the PTB, the Engagés, Vooruit, the CD&V and the Open Vld.
The socialist Paul Magnette opened the ball. He was discreet upon his arrival at the Brussels Palace. His interview was brief, barely twenty minutes. Monday afternoon, he announced that his party was choosing opposition at all levels of power.
gullThe PTB is the fourth national party, the third French-speaking party
Voters also expressed social concerns on June 9, which will have to be taken into account, warned the president of the PTB, Raoul Hedebouw, on Tuesday upon his arrival at the Royal Palace where he was received in audience by the King.
If the PTB fell on Sunday in Wallonia, it however progressed in Brussels and Flanders. “There is a social signal from the voter. We would do well to take this into account and not put aside the parties which also won in the elections. The PTB is the fourth national party, the third French-speaking party (Editor’s note: 4th in the Walloon parliament and 3rd in the Brussels parliament),” underlined the president of the communists.
The PTB believes that it has a role to play in the formation of a next government, possibly through “external support”, even if the prospect of a right-leaning alliance with the MR and the N-VA makes this scenario unlikely. “The probability of creating a majority with the PTB is not very high, it’s true […] For us, social priorities must be at the heart of the negotiations. The election result also shows that there were victories on the left. The left has never been so strong in Flanders. It is not because the PS and Ecolo have had their way that there are no left-wing priorities to take into account,” added Mr. Hedebouw.
The electoral campaign was often very tough between the PS and the PTB and never took the path of a front combining socialists and communists. The latter are severe with regard to the choices of the PS, including the decision announced Monday to sit in opposition at all levels. “The PS confirms its attitude towards the PTB. He closed the door during the PTB electoral campaign. This is also one of the reasons why the Engagés rose: the PS said ‘vote Engagés, it’s a useful vote’. The left-wing parties must question their tactics followed during the electoral campaign.”
