Saint-Gilles Mayor Jean Spinette (PS) has hit back at claims that there is "weak" collaboration between local authorities at Brussels-Midi station. "When I read that, I fell off my chair," he said on Wednesday.
Drug-related crime at Brussels-Midi station has become an even more salient topic since the Plan Midi was announced last September. At the time, Home Affairs Minister Annelies Verlinden (CD&V) promised to crack down on crime by introducing a greater police presence and installing a police commissariat within the station along with a rake of other security measures.
A POLITICO article published on Wednesday included comments from a Verlinden cabinet spokesperson who said that the response to the plan was "very weak". "It was not possible to bring together all the services and partners," he said.
Saint-Gilles Mayor Jean Spinette (PS) has since reacted to the remark. "Contrary to what has been reported, all the players and levels of authority have been working together for a year," he said. "When I read [the spokesperson's comment], I fell off my chair."
Three-pronged approach
Spinette highlighted multiple levels of collaboration between police, social services and other government agencies in the area.
Regarding security, police working in the Midi Zone coordinate with railway police and have carried out 420 arrests since the Plan Midi was announced.
Interior Minister Annelies Verlinden pictured during the police crackdown at Midi on 26 August 2023. Credit: Belga / Nicolas Maeterlinck
There is also a focus on keeping the train station clean with the help of Bruxelles-Propreté, the city-wide cleaning service, and social support is provided to drug users in and around the station. "Our teams of street social workers are in daily contact with homeless people," said the Mayor.
Spinette also outlined the occurrence of regular meetings relating to infrastructural development in the area and added that he was in regular contact with Mayor of Anderlecht Fabrice Cumps (PS).
The 'Brussels is badly managed' tune
Saint-Gilles, Anderlecht and Forest are the three municipalities making up the Midi Police Zone, one of Brussels' six police districts. As Federal Government talks progress, there is talk of merging all six zones into one police force, a proposal the Socialist Party strongly rejects.
Advocates of the merger believe centralisation will allow for better cooperation between zones and ultimately reduce crime. All Flemish parties are in favour of the move while Ecolo was the only French-speaking party to campaign for it in the run-up to elections. French-speaking centrists CD&V have indicated flexibility during government talks.
Saint-Gilles Mayor Jean Spinette (C) pictured at the scene of a shooting incident, Thursday 27 June 2024. Credit: Belga / Nicolas Maeterlinck
In line with his party's disapproval of a centralised police force, Spinette's rejects the idea that Brussels is too fragmented to function.
"The 'Brussels is badly managed' tune is playing again," he said on Wednesday, calling on everyone to "take the whole problem into account and to continue working together to improve the situation in and around the station."
He also repeated his call to federal authorities for the installation of the long-awaited police station at Midi station, which was supposed to be opened at the end of summer.
