Belgium De Wever resignation was set to be offered on Monday morning, after late-night coalition talks failed to reach a compromise on the country’s budget, Belgian media reported. Prime Minister Bart De Wever arrived at the Royal Palace in Brussels on Monday for a meeting with King Philippe, Reuters reported, and was widely expected to offer his resignation after his five-party coalition again failed to agree on next year’s budget.
The federal core cabinet broke up around 1:00 a.m. on Monday without a budget agreement, according to HLN, cited by BelgiumNow. Belga reported that De Wever was going to the king on Monday, though HLN had not yet been able to confirm that detail independently. De Wever’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment, Reuters said, and the prime minister did not speak to the press as he arrived at the palace.
A 10 billion euro gap
The government has been arguing for months over 10 billion euros in budget cuts and tax increases that De Wever says are needed to keep state finances in check and to keep Belgium within European budgetary rules. The coalition must find that effort by 2029, and it must reach a deal by Tuesday, November 3, at the latest to avoid an emergency budget based on provisional twelfths, known in Dutch as a noodbegroting.
Taxes are the sticking point. Vooruit, the Flemish socialist party, wants 1.5 billion euros in extra revenue by taxing the strongest shoulders more, while Les Engagés aims for 1 billion euros but may accept 1.5 billion, according to BelgiumNow’s summary of the talks. Deputy Prime Minister David Clarinval of the liberal MR said on leaving the talks that there were still far too many taxes on the table, though he did not rule out discussions resuming on Monday. Deputy Prime Minister Maxime Prévot of Les Engagés was more hopeful, speaking briefly from his car, while Deputy Prime Minister Vincent Van Peteghem of CD&V left Wetstraat 16 without comment.
What the king may do next
The king was not expected to immediately accept the resignation, newspaper De Tijd cited sources as saying, but could instead send De Wever back for a last push at the negotiating table, Reuters reported. LaPresse carried the same expectation, reporting that the king may nevertheless grant the prime minister a little more time for one final attempt, with deputy prime ministers still believing an agreement is possible.
If the resignation is accepted, the king could ask other parties to form a new coalition, or it could lead to new elections. De Wever has repeatedly warned of an “interest snowball” without budget cuts, where Belgium would need to take on new loans to pay interest on existing debt. The crisis coincides with heightened stress on financial markets, Reuters noted, where interest rates have risen sharply on government bonds of Belgium, France and other European countries seen to have weak public finances. Last year, Belgium’s budget talks also went into extra time after a similar palace meeting.
