Bonjour, guten Tag and hello everyone!
In life, there are not many situations to which a well-chosen Charles Dickens quote does not apply. The European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen must have thought the same when preparing for her State of the Union address this morning.
When speaking about the EU's last 12 months – which was marked by headlines about forest fires, AI and far-right victories, but also growing European trading power and energy independence – she channelled Dickens to sum it all up:
"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times."
In her speech, von der Leyen also announced several new plans and initiatives for the upcoming political years to address these challenges.
Among them were a European Heatwave Plan, a Security Council, an emergency framework for mass arrivals of irregular migrants, a unique "associate" membership of the EU for Canada, and a bill to ban social media for children under 13 years old.
Reporter Josse Van Dessel followed the speech, and gave an overview of the most important parts here.
In Belgium, most ministers seem to be on board with several of VDL's proposals.
While the EU's Kids Act, which includes the social media restrictions, will only be presented on Thursday, the Belgian authorities said that they are "cautiously optimistic" about the plans. Read what they had to say here.
We also have a story today about the Brussels-Capital Region, and its ballooning public debt. As reporter Christoper Richards explains, new report painted a worrying picture of debt levels in the entire country through 2031 – but especially for Brussels.
In the capital, the region's debt could become three times as large as its revenue if nothing is done. This, Christopher says, is happening despite efforts since 2025 to reduce the deficit. Find out more here.
And lastly, we also have a column by regular contributor Derek Blyth. At the start of Brussels' Mobility Week, he tries to explain how (and maybe most importantly: why) Brussels traffic drives everyone mad.
He aptly describes a situation that many people who walk through the city will be familiar with.
"You reach [a] crossing, stop, and think, what do I do now? The cars should stop, but sometimes don’t. The bikes should stop, but mostly keep going. The scooters should also stop, but they can’t, or they won’t. And then you have the trams, which have priority over everything else."
As a result, he says, people might start feeling like they need a psychology degree to work out who is going to let them cross the road. How did it get this far? Derek tells you.
For comments, tips or suggestions to improve our coverage, drop me an email at m.chini@brusselstimes.com.
Tschüss!
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1. Security Council, Canada’s EU association and social media ban: Von der Leyen’s State of the Union
"The state of our Union is the strongest it has ever been. The state of our Union can also feel as precarious as it has ever been." Read more.
2. ‘Better safe than sorry’: Belgium welcomes EU’s social media ban for young people
"Young people should not have to adapt to harmful social media; social media should adapt to young people and be safe for them." Read more.
3. Von der Leyen offers Canada ‘Associate Membership’ in the European Union
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has offered Canada the prospect of becoming the first associated member of the European Union. Read more.
4. Brussels’ debt could become three times as large as its revenue in five years
How broke are the regions and communities in Belgium? And how easily could they dig themselves out of a financial hole in the future? Read more.
5. Belgium will not send underage asylum seekers to return hubs
Belgium will use return hubs for rejected asylum seekers but will not send minors to them, Prime Minister Bart De Wever told parliament on Wednesday. Read more.
6. Major traffic disruptions expected in Brussels as student protest against reforms on Wednesday
Police are warning of major traffic disruption in and around Brussels' city centre. Read more.
7. Drive baby drive: How Brussels traffic drives everyone mad
"You have the cars, which have been here for generations, taking up all the space they need. And then you have the invasive species – the bikes, scooters, joggers and pedestrians – all trying to grab a share of the space." Read more.
