The Brussels budget: one big enigma

The Brussels-Capital government reached an agreement on the 2022 budget a week ago. At least, that is what the Brussels MPs understand from the press and what Minister Gatz confirmed during the Finance Committee this week. A week after the agreement and a day before the Brussels government declaration, the MPs still had not received any additional information about that budget agreement. “This Brussels government not only clearly lacks respect for democracy, but it also lacks any seriousness,” criticises Brussels group leader Cieltje Van Achter.

While a new political culture and dialogue with citizens were spearheads for the Brussels Vivaldi Government, the Brussels MEPs are confronted with a lack of political culture and a lack of respect for democracy. This government too often fails to answer questions from MPs and withholds information, Cieltje Van Achter believes. “However, the Brussels Government announced a savings exercise of EUR 105 million and a delay in a number of investment projects of EUR 140.7 million. This is not insignificant. However, when MPs ask for more information, we are put off indefinitely. The people of Brussels should be allowed to know how many years the new metro will be postponed again, for example, or which mobility projects are being shelved.”

A sorry state without any seriousness

As Brussels’ debt mounts, Minister Gatz again stated in the media that this government is aiming for a balanced budget by 2024. He just added that “strategic” investments of EUR 500 million annually do get left out of the budget targets. “This is a budget trick to mask the dramatic financial situation of the Brussels-Capital Region,” responds Cieltje Van Achter. “Year after year, the government keeps EUR 500 million in investments outside the budget. That accounts for nearly 10% of the total revenue. You could accept this for exceptional investments such as the metro, but all those Brussels investments are not that strategic. This way, the Brussels debt increases, of course. The University of Namur predicted this spring that the Brussels debt would amount to just under EUR 20 billion by 2026. That is a sorry state. To then casually say that a balance is in sight shows a serious lack of seriousness.”