Hallo, salut, hi there!
It's Maïthé here, keeping you up to date on what's happening in Belgium.
Today's main story is about Belgium's budget – again. Earlier this week, Belgium's Prime Minister Bart De Wever (N-VA) kicked off the negotiations to fill a €10 billion deficit in the country's budget.
While ministers are squabbling over where best to cut costs, the leader of the Francophone liberal MR party Georges-Louis Bouchez has now proposed going beyond the €10 billion targets set by De Wever.
As reporter Josse Van Dessel lays out, Bouchez says he knows how to cut the federal budget by €17 billion, without raising any taxes. He did not provide exact data for his plans.
He wants to target the "colossal abuse" within Belgium's health care sector, reduce the number of civil servants drastically, and have smaller parliaments and fewer ministers. He also wants to close several train stations and courthouses.
We also have a (slightly) positive story about grocery prices today. Reporter Christopher Richards explains why the cost of a supermarket trolley is finally coming down in Belgium.
The summer months saw a decline in grocery prices in Belgium, with fruits and vegetables notably cheaper than a year ago. However, both the summer heatwave and the war in Iran could make that drop short-lived.
If you have comments, tips, corrections or suggestions, you can find me at m.chini@brusselstimes.com.
Have a good one!
Maïthé
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1. ‘Close train stations and fewer ministers’: Bouchez proposes slashing Belgian budget by €17 billion
As negotiations have started to fill a €10 billion deficit in the Belgian budget, the MR party leader has proposed going beyond the targets set by the PM. Read more.
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