The Finance Committee of the Brussels Parliament has approved the draft for provisional twelfths for the first three months of next year following a lengthy meeting on Monday evening.
Five committee members voted in favour after Budget and Finance Minister Dirk De Smedt (Open VLD) addressed criticism from the Court of Audit in the previous meeting.
Eight members, including representatives from MR, PTB/PVDA, and one from Les Engagés, abstained, while two others – N-VA and Team Fouad Ahidar – voted against.
The deadlock within the Brussels Region, which recently broke the record for the longest government formation set by the federal Di Rupo administration in 2011, influenced the voting process.
Minister De Smedt asserted that the government would adhere strictly to spending limits for the first quarter of 2026, equal to three twelfths of the originally planned 2024 budget.
He also confirmed there would be budget reallocations to ensure essential expenditures, stressing this would not lead to increased spending but would remain within the existing limits.
The Brussels-Capital Region Government has been operating under provisional twelfths since the start of this year, allowing monthly expenditure of up to one twelfth of the last approved budget from 2024. Parliamentary approval is required every quarter for this arrangement to continue.
'MR unable to find majority'
As of Tuesday, the Brussels-Capital Region has been without an elected government for 542 days – breaking the world record of 541 days, held by Belgium's Federal Government led by Elio Di Rupo (PS) in 2011.
Les Engagés' leader Yvan Verougstraete holds a press conference regarding the negotiations to form a new government for the Brussels-Capital Region, on Monday 1 September 2025, in Brussels. Credit: Belga/Marius Burgelman
The regional elections were held on 9 June 2024, with the French-speaking liberals MR emerging as the largest party. They were then tasked with forming a majority – but have failed to do so.
The leader and MEP from francophone centrist party Les Engagés, Yvan Verougstraete wrote on social media about the difficulties of forming a government in Brussels after 541 days, and the need to find alternative majorities, RTBF reports.
"MR have been unable to build a majority and, unless the PS or Ecolo change their position, we will be forced, within a maximum of 10 days, and given the urgency of the situation, to acknowledge that it is unfortunately not possible to gather such a majority behind MR," writes Verougstraete.
Verougstraete says that all credible solutions to save the Region must be considered, which needs to redress its budgetary trajectory by at least €1 billion.
"We must find one, whether its from the opposition, within an alternative majority or in support of an initiative by civil society or technical experts,"explains the leader of Les Engagés.
