Brussels government formation completely stuck as MR refuses to meet Groen's demand
The French-speaking Brussels formateur David Leisterh (MR) does not want to back down on the postponement of the tightening of the low emission zone (LEZ), he told BX1 radio on Friday. The formation of a new government in Brussels seems to have come to a standstill.
Leisterh was responding to a statement by Dutch-speaking broadcaster Elke Van den Brandt (Groen). She said on Thursday that the only way to move the negotiations forward was for the French-speaking parties to withdraw their proposal to postpone the LEZ by two years. They did so without consulting Van den Brandt, who said they "stuck a knife in my back".
Instead, Van den Brandt is proposing a temporary freeze on fines for drivers while the parties negotiate a compromise. But MR's David Leisterh said on Friday he did not believe this was a viable solution to the problem.
"Keeping the rule in place but not applying it, that's old politics and I don't want to stand for that. We need clarity on the timing. 1 January 2025 is tomorrow. We want a two-year delay and I think the basis for a compromise is already there".
Deadlock
This means that the formation of a government in Brussels has come to a complete standstill, with both sides refusing to budge. It will be difficult to avoid both parties in the formation of the next Brussels government: Groen won 22.8 per cent of the Dutch-speaking vote, while MR secured 26 per cent of the French-speaking vote.
This deadlock was predicted beforehand, as both Groen and MR campaigned on opposing platforms: Van den Brandt is the driving force behind the 'Good Move' mobility plan, which restricts car traffic in the city, while Leister's MR ran on a promise to abolish it.
MR leader Georges-Louis Bouchez also reacted strongly to Van den Brandt's statement, accusing her of "taking Brussels hostage". "If this blockade continues, the MR will take other parliamentary initiatives to implement the reforms voted for by the people," he wrote on X. "First of all, we will end the Good Move in Parliament in the coming weeks. Immobilism will never be our choice".
© BELGA PHOTO BENOIT DOPPAGNE
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