Dozens of illegal commercial vehicles still in Brussels government services

In 2020, the Court of Audit carried out a large-scale audit of the allocation of commercial vehicles to Brussels government staff. As early as 2018, the Brussels government services apparently allocated dozens of commercial vehicles without any regulatory basis. It is obvious that nothing has changed today, according to an answer from competent minister Sven Gatz (Open Vld), to a question from Cieltje Van Achter, N-VA party leader in the Brussels-Capital Parliament.

“How much longer is this going to take?”

“If the Court of Audit points out year after year that the regional institutions illegally allocate company vehicles to their staff, then surely, as the competent minister, you make sure that this is put right as soon as possible,” responds Cieltje Van Achter. “How long is this going to take? It is now the fourth year in a row that we are aware that this problem exists. Still, nothing gets done. The least citizens can expect is that the government does not operate illegally. Imagine if private companies operated this way.”

A mystery

For Cieltje Van Achter, this is yet another signal that the Vervoort III government is failing to tackle problems decisively. “Even when the Court of Audit points out irregularities in the remuneration policy of the regional institutions in the most explicit terms, the majority parties fail to resolve this. The minister says he wants to work on a mobility budget for Brussels staff, but adds that there is no political agreement on this. Why something so elementary has to take years is a mystery to me.”