Leader of the Flemish right-wing N-VA party, Bart De Wever, will make an appearance at the Royal Palace at 14:00 on Monday as part of ongoing talks to form a Federal Government.
N-VA party leader Bart De Wever was appointed government formator by King Philippe in early July, making him responsible for Federal Government formation and positioning him most likely as the next Prime Minister of Belgium. He will meet with the King on Monday and is expected to request an additional week of negotiating time.
The meeting follows a week-long break in government formation talks taking place between right-wing Flemish party N-VA, right-wing CD&V, Flemish socialists Vooruit and Francophone liberals Mouvement Réformateur (MR) and centre-right Les Engagés.
Clock ticking
Party leaders are under pressure to come to an agreement before 20 September, the deadline for submitting a national budget to the EU. The plan is crucial for Belgium to be able to manage in its high budget deficit and national debt.
However, De Wever has failed to convince all of his counterparts about the latest revision of his "supernote", which proposes reforms to tackling taxation, the labour market and pensions. Late-night negotiations lasting until 04:00 on Sunday morning were unsuccessful. It is therefore expected that De Wever will ask the King for another week on Monday.
Vooruit is the only left-leaning party at the negotiating table, and concessions made to the socialists on Sunday night were unpalatable for MR, Belga News Agency reports.
