N-VA tears into COCOM budget: “No vision, no plan, no transparency”

The United College today presented the budget for the Common Community Commission (COCOM), projecting a €35 million deficit in 2026 and a supposed return to a balanced budget by 2029. According to Brussels parliamentary group leader Gilles Verstraeten, however, the budget is built on wishful thinking, lacking transparency, a serious financial strategy and any credible reforms. “In short: a lot of hot air.”

“Anyone reading this budget will quickly notice that the figures are based more on hope than on actual policy,” said Gilles Verstraeten. “The announced €35 million deficit only works if you include nearly €65 million in so-called ‘underutilisation’ — money they simply hope will not be spent. In reality, the COCOM is heading towards a deficit of almost €100 million.”

Democratic oversight made impossible

According to Gilles Verstraeten, any meaningful democratic scrutiny is once again being obstructed. “Year after year, the United College refuses to submit essential documents, including the consolidated accounts of the COCOM. As a result, the Court of Audit lacks the information needed to properly assess the budget or certify the accounts. It’s astonishing and completely opaque.”

N-VA also points out that two of the three autonomous public bodies under the COCOM — New Samusocial and Bruss’Help — have failed to produce accounts since 2022. “The Court of Audit is scathing about this and clearly states that it stems from the absence of proper budgetary accounting. Yet New Samusocial is receiving another €30 million in additional funding this year. It is incomprehensible that institutions which have failed to submit proper accounts for years continue to receive millions in extra funding without any serious conditions attached. It shows just how deeply financial mismanagement has become entrenched within the COCOM,” Gilles Verstraeten added.

“An empty shell in terms of substance”

According to Gilles Verstraeten, the policy note itself is also strikingly vague. “Objectives without deadlines, without concrete outcomes and often without any measurable indicators. It is telling that the gender policy note is two and a half times longer and actually elaborated in detail.”

Verstraeten describes the proposed path towards a balanced budget by 2029 as entirely lacking credibility. “There are no concrete measures on the table, no financial roadmap and absolutely no clarity on how the announced investments will be financed. First they throw out ambitious figures, and then a working group is expected to figure out later how to make them happen. It’s completely backwards.”

“A budget should reflect a clear strategy that provides serious answers to the major challenges we face today,” Gilles Verstraeten concluded. “What we have before us today is mainly a document filled with assumptions, shifted budget lines and political spin. This government has no vision and no plan for the COCOM — just as it has none for its regional responsibilities.”