Outgoing PM opens door for his party to join next government
Belgium cannot afford to have its budget derailed for a whole year, outgoing prime minister Alexander De Croo said on Friday. That is why his party, Open VLD, has accepted an invitation to talks with formateur Bart De Wever.
De Wever has been trying to form Belgium's next federal government since the country held elections in June. For months, the same five parties have been in talks to form a coalition, but the socialist Vooruit party is now at risk of being booted out.
On Thursday it emerged that De Wever had invited the liberal Open VLD for talks, as attempts to form a government with Vooruit appear to have failed. This could mean the return of the outgoing prime minister's party to government, despite the heavy losses it suffered in the June elections.
Willing to listen
De Croo said Open VLD politicians were "constructive people" and always willing to listen. "My priority is to make sure that there is a budget and that the necessary reforms can take place. Whatever happens after that, we will have to see," he said in Budapest on Friday, where he was attending a European summit.
"If the five parties that have been negotiating until today succeed: no problem, they should continue," said De Croo. "But if they do not succeed, then I think we should listen to how we can avoid our country losing a whole year, having a year of budgetary derailment. That's not good for anybody."
Wait-and-see attitude
If Open VLD can help in any way, De Croo is certainly willing to listen, he said. Whether that means his party will join the next government is too early to say. "We are not necessarily jumping at the chance either," he said.
"We are taking a wait-and-see attitude," said De Croo. "But we are not going to derail our country for a year because people are not making much progress five months after the elections, are we?"
Outgoing Belgian prime minister Alexander De Croo arriving at a European summit in Budapest, Hungary, on 8 November 2024 © PHOTO FERENC ISZA / AFP