Bart De Wever confirmed on Wednesday that the Federal Government intends to present a budget to Parliament in May.
The Prime Minister admitted that “it will be very difficult to conclude reforms for the fiscal year 2025.” He instead presented 2025 as a “transitional” year and noted that the lengthy government formation process has prevented a tax reform until now. “It’s unfortunate that the formation took so long,” he stated before the Chamber’s Interior Committee.
De Wever confirmed that two-thirds of fiscal efforts will focus on “structural reforms”, which are expected to bring medium-term positive effects. “It would be strange if there were none,” he added. However, the goal of reaching an 80% employment rate is not planned for this legislative period.
He praised Arizona’s policy as one of financial responsibility and highlighted that it has been endorsed by experts. At the same time, Belgium's new Prime Minister called criticism from opposition parties as “leftist fantasies” and dismissed unrealistic ideas that do not provide solutions.
Amid the current geopolitical situation and resulting economic uncertainty, the government has allocated a €2 billion buffer for expenses. This margin will be included in the 2029 budget to compensate for any lower-than-expected returns. “We will do more than what Europe requires in terms of spending norms, as we have planned a safety margin considering the economic environment,” De Wever explained.
The EU has currently imposed an Excessive Debt Procedure on Belgium to pressure the country into reducing its burgeoning budget deficit and national debt.
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Regarding whether defence spending could be excluded from the European budgetary rules, the European Commission will publish a white paper on this matter, De Wever informed.
The former Finance Minister Vincent Van Quickenborne (Open Vld) criticised De Wever’s remarks on the previous government. “Present a serious budgetary plan and show real improvement instead of stories and emptiness.”
Sofie Merckx (PTB) recalled the N-VA’s participation in the “Swedish” coalition (2014-2018) under the Michel government. “You ensured less revenue for social security,” she said.
