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Velden, Wim Van Den
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4 articles of this author have been cited in the European Press Review so far.
Belgium on its way to emergency government
King Albert II of Belgium has asked the country's caretaker prime minister Yves Leterme to present a budget for 2011. This is a step towards an emergency government, the financial paper De Tijd writes: "King Albert is effectively ordering Leterme's outgoing government to continue business as usual and save the country. Elections are unthinkable and threaten to culminate in a referendum on the future of Belgium. Apparently the gravity of the situation overrides law and constitution. ... And then there is an end in sight to the longest process of forming a government the country has ever witnessed. The sixth state reform must once again be put on ice and we will be left with a government that must muddle its way through until the elections in 2014. Once again we face four lost years of immobility. Stagnation is a step backwards. Below the surface the country's deep crisis is getting bigger all the time and it could erupt at any moment like a volcano that will be virtually impossible to control."
» full article (external link, Dutch)
More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Belgium
New elections would clarify situation in Belgium
Johan Vande Lanotte, the man appointed by King Albert II of Belgium to mediate a coalition government, on Wednesday gave up his mandate. This will further aggravate the political situation in the country, making new elections inevitable, the business paper De Tijd writes: "This is perhaps the chance to break through the political impasse and end the ceaseless messing around. Basically it's not a bad thing to ask the voters. At least it will provide clarity. In the end this election will be a referendum on Belgium. ... In Flanders the result is particularly unpredictable. For how radical are the Flemish? Those who vote for a nationalist Flemish party are effectively voting for the end of Belgium and giving the political mandate to split up the country. ... Up to now only a small minority in Flanders favours the division. It can't be ruled out that Flemish voters will reshuffle the cards and give [president of the Flemish N-VA party] Bart De Wever a drubbing. And if we end up with a similar result to that of 13 June 2010, when the [separatist] N-VA won, … this would be a clear message that Flanders wants to part ways with Belgium."
» full article (external link, Dutch)
More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Elections, » Belgium
Plumber and accountant will get Belgium back on track
The Christian Democrat Yves Leterme is to become prime minister of Belgium once again, succeeding Herman Van Rompuy, who has been elected new EU President. Jean-Luc Dehaene, likewise a Christian Democrat and former prime minister, has been given the task of tackling the controversial state reform, the revision of Belgium's state structure, known as the BHV. The business paper De Tijd is confident that the Christian Democratic duo consisting of "plumber and accountant" will be able to lead Belgium out of its current impasse. "In a world which is changing at a rapid pace and has a dynamic global economy the Wetstraat [the government centre in Brussels] can no longer afford to spend months staring blindly at the BHV and chasing its own tail. So it's a good thing that the issue is being put in the capable hands of plumber Jean-Luc Dehaene, which leaves Prime Minister Yves Leterme and the government free to focus on social and economic issues. … [Yves Leterme] is perhaps the right man at the right moment. We need someone who is good at figures because right now the greatest challenge is to reduce the budget deficit bit by bit."
» full article (external link, Dutch)
More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Belgium
Asylum compromise in Belgium
After years of wrangling the Belgian government has reached a compromise on recognising the status of asylum-seekers who have been living in Belgium illegally for years. The business newspaper De Tijd is relieved: "It's good to know that political compromises can still be reached in this country, even if it remains unclear whether the asylum problem has really been resolved. There will always be those who seek their fortune in a world where wealth is distributed unequally. Bringing the problem under control is the only possible solution. And this can only be done by keeping the influx under control. The plan of [Prime Minister Herman] Van Rompuy's government to give asylum seekers who have been here for years and are 'firmly established' the chance to settle down officially is defendable. It would be inhumane to deport families who have been living here for years. … Nonetheless: the regulation is supposed to solve old problems but in fact creates new ones because many more will now try their luck."
» full article (external link, Dutch)
More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Belgium
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