There is still a possibility of new regulations for asbestos victims during this term of government, said Deputy Prime Minister Petre De Sutter (Groen). Last week, a proposal by Valerie Van Peel (N-VA) was again voted down, which led to outrage across the country.
On Tuesday, the bill proposed by Van Peel – who is in the opposition – was voted down for the fourth time in the Federal Committee on Social Affairs. While Groen-Ecolo and CD&V abstained, all other government parties (Open VLD, MR, Vooruit, PS) voted against it. The opposition parties (Vlaams Belang, PVDA-PTB and Les Engagés) all voted in favour of the bill.
While it seemed to be the last opportunity to pass the law before the elections in June, De Sutter now said that there is a new proposal on the table that can still be approved by this government.
"It will have to happen quickly, but it is still possible," said on the Flemish television programme 'De Zevende Dag' on Sunday. "We would like to support a bill within the majority that is very much in line with Van Peel's proposal. We share the objective, which is why we did not vote against it, unlike the rest of the majority."
Vice-prime minister and minister of Civil Services and State-owned companies Petra De Sutter. Credit: Belga/Jonas Roosens
After her bill was voted down for the fourth time, Van Peel accused her fellow MPs of not voting in good faith, but instead blindly following the party line and "destroying the credibility of politics" – a reaction that sparked a lot of debate in the media and among politicians.
"The good thing about the fuss that has been going on – and that is absolutely to the credit of Valerie Van Peel – is that it has made it clear that we cannot leave it at this," said De Sutter. "The Liberal colleagues have already made openings in recent days and say that they still want to look at it again. So we are convinced that it can still work."
She added that it is sometimes difficult to find the right solutions "to get something done," and called it a consequence of being part of a majority. "What we want is that asbestos victims are not left out in the cold, including the people who worked in asbestos factories."
What is the bill about?
Van Peel's bill has been on the table for years and should make it possible for asbestos victims to file a complaint against a company, even if they have already received compensation through the Asbestos Fund. Currently, victims have to choose one or the other.
However, the proposal only concerns so-called "environmental victims," which are people who came into contact with asbestos because they lived close to a factory or worked with asbestos materials.
This means that the proposal would not help people who worked in an asbestos factory – a distinction that the Council of State had criticised in an advisory report.
