Belgium in Brief: Two down, two to go

Hi everyone, bonjour and goedemiddag.

Josse Van Desel here for your daily Belgium in Brief roundup.

Budget season is in full force in Belgium, as two of its regional governments have now found agreements on where they will allocate money next year, and more importantly, where they will take funding away to fix the budget deficits that riddle the country like potholes do its roads.

Following the Flemish will they, won't they dance last week, the Brussels-Capital Region had a more straightforward road to an agreement. Minister-President Boris Dilliès (MR) announced the deal Sunday night, proudly claiming there would be no linear tax increase for the people of Brussels.

Find an overview of the agreement here.

Vincent Glowinski might be an unfamiliar name, but we have all been exposed to his work.

Under the pseudonym Bonom, Glowinski has been creating some of the more polarising art pieces in and around Brussels. He has painted pieces with innocent names like 'The Hand', 'Red Tree', and 'Moi ' on walls throughout the city.

But his true claim to fame was the mural of a penis he painted in the Rue des Poissonniers. For the past decade, he shocked Brussels with his explicit murals, showcasing explicit scenes and body parts for all to see.

As Glowinski moved back to his native country, France, it is hard to find him in the Belgian capital nowadays. But our reporter Kosmos Khoroshavin managed to track him down for an interview.

Before you leave, I would like to draw your attention to several articles from the latest edition of our magazine that are now available online.

Lisa Bradshaw spoke to filmmaker Lukas Dhondt about his new award-winning movie 'Coward,' telling the story of drag shows on the Western Front during the First World War.

Liz Newmark wrote a great deep dive asking if office conversions can help ease the housing crisis in Brussels

And last but not least, Philippa Nuttall looked at a modest rooftop solar scheme in Saint-Gilles, investigating why Belgium’s wider green transition remains a work in progress.

If you have any comments, tips or suggestions to improve our coverage, please drop me an email at j.vandessel@brusselstimes.com.

Have a great week, and talk to you soon!