Negotiators of the Arizona coalition met on Thursday with the aim of forming a Federal Government before the end of the year. CD&V leader Sammy Mahdi says talks need to speed up.
Negotiators from every party of the prospective Arizona coalition (N-VA, CD&V, MR, Les Engagés and Vooruit) all called for a faster pace before local elections on Sunday 13 October.
The group met for the second time since then on Thursday. "The speed could be a bit faster," said Mahdi ahead of the meeting. "I make that clear every day and I will do that here too."
Mahdi also expressed his "frustration" at multiple leaks that have occurred in recent weeks. Anonymous sources have released several different proposals before they have been agreed upon in a bid to increase pressure on other negotiating partners.
The CD&V leader said a "good and solid pace" is necessary to form a new government by the end of the year. "That will take some effort, and so everyone has to work seriously and perhaps leak fewer dossiers to the press and try to reach an agreement around the table."
Government by Christmas?
Federal Government formator Bart de Wever (N-VA) has imposed a mid-November deadline on talks. This is partly due to the fact that Belgium must submit a financial recovery plan to the EU by the end of the year. The country is under an excessive debt procedure, meaning that the bloc will penalise it for overspending if it does not take steps to resolve the issue.
Government texts are currently under discussion in working groups until the end of the week. Issues will go to the negotiating table afterwards, but next week is a national holiday (Semaine du Toussaint). Mahdi says he will be working during the holiday period.
Belgium holds the world record for the longest periods without a government following the 2010 and 2019 elections, having broke its own 2010 record when Prime Minister Alexander De Croo took office with a new cabinet in 2020.
