The Brussels formator of the Dutch-speaking electoral college Elke Van den Brandt (Groen) has called on the francophone Socialist Party (PS) to join government formation talks.
Speaking on VTM Nieuws, Van den Brandt highlighted that the situation without a government is becoming challenging for many organisations in the capital. Forming a government is a matter of managing the situation in a socially responsible manner, she said.
Brussels’ negotiations are at a standstill. After six months of talks, progress has been made on the Flemish side. Groen, Vooruit, Open VLD, and N-VA have agreed to negotiate together.
The announcement of N-VA joining the negotiation table led to the PS dropping out of the anticipated Francophone coalition with MR and Les Engagés.
During the Sunday midday news, Van den Brandt urged the PS to “overcome its shadow” and at least start discussions with N-VA, noting they had negotiated at the federal level in 2020.
The green party leader also spoke about the budget situation. Like the federal level, Brussels will operate on provisional monthly budgets starting in January. The government will only be able to spend an amount equivalent to one-twelfth of the previous year’s budget each month.
Van den Brandt warned that many social organisations, such as homeless shelters, would only have funds for three months and would have to make staff redundant. She therefore calls for electoral rule reforms, specifically the introduction of bilingual lists, which would simplify coalition formation and prevent a repeat of the current situation in five years.
