News

Bart De Wever: “Climate policy must not mean deindustrialisation”

12 February 2026
Bart De Wever

Following the informal European summit on competitiveness in Alden Biesen, Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever sounded the alarm about the future of European industry—the backbone of our prosperity. “We need to achieve climate neutrality by 2050. But if that leads to Europe’s deindustrialisation, …

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Axel Ronse: “The European pay transparency directive is a blow to our competitiveness”

11 February 2026

Belgium must transpose the European pay transparency directive into national law by 7 June 2026 at the latest. The directive aims to narrow the pay gap between men and women — a laudable objective. But according to Axel Ronse, leader of the N-VA group in the Belgian Chamber of Representatives, …

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Prime Minister Bart De Wever lashes out at Brussels coalition talks excluding N-VA

11 February 2026
Bart De Wever

In the HLN podcast Het Rapport van de Wetstraat, Prime Minister Bart De Wever reacted sharply after seven parties entered into talks to form a Brussels government without the N-VA. What particularly sticks in his craw is Anders’ sudden willingness to come to the table without the N-VA—apparently …

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New rules on safe third countries adopted by the European Parliament

10 February 2026
Assita Kanko

Today, the European Parliament overwhelmingly approved the agreement setting out the conditions for applying the new rules on so-called “safe third countries.” Member States will now be able to determine whether a non-EU country qualifies as a safe third country. “With this new legislation, we are …

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Johan Van Overtveldt on the ECB: “Price stability must remain at the heart of monetary policy”

10 February 2026

Today, the European Parliament votes on the European Central Bank’s 2025 Annual Report, drafted by Member of the European Parliament Johan Van Overtveldt. In his report, the Chair of the Committee on Budgets calls for a renewed focus on the core principles of monetary policy: price stability, …

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N-VA votes against unrealistic European climate law: “Do we want to be left with an industrial graveyard?”

10 February 2026

The European Parliament voted today on the revised European Climate Law. The agreement with the member states introduces a new, interim and binding target to cut CO₂ emissions by 90% by 2040. Citing concerns about its economic feasibility and the impact on industrial competitiveness, the N-VA …

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