Elections 2024: Brussels government formation becomes battle over Good Move
Abolishing the Good Move mobility plan is a priority for francophone liberal party MR in Brussels, leader Georges-Louis Bouchez said on Tuesday evening on VRT's Terzake. Bouchez is setting up his party for a direct confrontation with Groen, the big winner of the Dutch-speaking elections, complicating the formation of a Brussels government.
The Brussels parliament has 89 members: 17 Dutch-speakers and 72 French-speakers. The citizens of Brussels can vote for either a French or a Dutch list. MR was the big winner on the francophone side with 20 seats, while Groen won on the Dutch side with four seats.
A clear mandate
Groen's victory can mostly be attributed to one person: Brussels Mobility minister Elke Van den Brandt, who doubled her score compared to 2019. Van den Brandt says she sees the result as "a clear mandate to defend the changes in the public space and to ensure that we continue with a progressive mobility policy", referring to the Good Move mobility plan she introduced as minister.
Good Move was originally adopted in 2020, despite many protests. It aims to reduce the dominance of the car in Brussels, giving more space to pedestrians, cyclists and public transport. By 2030, traffic in the city centre should be reduced by 24 per cent.
But with MR's victory on the French-speaking side, that may be easier said than done. Bouchez criticised Good Move on several occasions during the previous legislature. Speaking on the Terzake talk show on Tuesday night, he said he had not changed his mind, saying that abolishing the plan was a priority for him and his party.
Good Move 'has to change'
Bouchez's colleague David Leisterh seems willing to negotiate with Groen, saying that the plan should be modified rather than abolished. "The objectives are good: less congestion, better air quality, more public transport, but Good Move as such has a lot of resistance in certain neighbourhoods and districts, so the mobility plan has to change," he said on Terzake.
While abolishing Good Move is out of the question for Van den Brandt, she is also willing to talk, she said. "I am happy to look at where we can refine and where we can do better. But the goals of giving people space, making sure children can cycle safely to school, making sure trees are planted in the streets and making sure children can play, I'll fight for those things until my last breath."
Groen and MR must first find separate majorities, with the Dutch- and French-speaking parties respectively, before they can start negotiating a coalition agreement.
Brussels Mobility minister Elke Van den Brandt © BELGA PHOTO DAVID STOCKMAN
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