Belgium should not let itself be "held hostage again" by debates about splitting up the country and breaking down the existing structures after the Federal elections of 2024, said Prime Minister Alexander De Croo on Sunday.
During the 1 May celebration of the Flemish liberal Open VLD party in Blankenberge, De Croo stressed that Belgium should not be sidetracked by debates about dividing the country. Instead, it should aim to reward and represent working people once next year's elections have taken place.
The Prime Minister stressed that implementing the fiscal reforms currently being undertaken must be the priority: "The fiscal reform is we need to make progress in the coming months, and must continue working on in the coming years." De Croo called for greater oversight when "scrutinising the tangle of benefits, social rebates and concessions, in all forms and at all levels."
In his address, De Croo cautioned against devoting airtime to perennial discussions that stoke inter-regional tensions. Referring to such debates as a trap, he said: "It is our choice whether our country gets stuck again next year and whether we again allow ourselves to be held hostage to the logic of splitting everything up and breaking it down."
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"We no longer have the time for that kind of discussion in our country. We have already lost far too much energy on that," he continued. "The next government should just get to work, building up instead of tearing down. That is the fundamental choice over the next few years."
Working people are "the backbone of our economy," he said, adding that if Belgium is to emerge stronger and more prosperous from the crises of recent years, it will be through their efforts.
The inequality between those in work and those not in work is "the real inequality in our country," De Croo stressed. "There are people in our country who go to work and are left with less than people who do not go to work."
