2007–2008 Belgian government formation
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The 2007–2008 Belgian government formation followed the general election
of 10 June 2007, and consisted of a period of negotiation in which the Flemish parties Flemish Liberal Democratic (Open VLD), Christian Democratic and Flemish
(CD&V) and New Flemish Alliance (N-VA), and the French-speaking parties Reformist Movement
(MR), Democratic Front of Francophones
(FDF) and Humanist Democratic Centre
(CdH) negotiated to form a government coalition. The negotiations were characterized by the disagreement between the Dutch
- and French
-speaking parties about the need for and nature of a constitutional reform
. According to some, this political conflict could have led to a partition of Belgium
.
On November 6, the formation talks became the longest in Belgian history. When the Parliament confirmed the formation of an interim Government, it had been 196 days since the Belgian people had voted out the previous coalition. It was the second longest formation period in European history, after the Dutch record of 208 days in 1977. Talks were interrupted twice by the resignation of the formateur
, which left the political parties waiting for a new appointment by the King
. Guy Verhofstadt
was appointed as mediator on December 3, with the task not only of looking into the formation of a new government, but also of investigating how the government could handle certain urgent policy matters. Pressed by time, and some say by the King, on 19 December Verhofstadt concluded a deal on a Government and presented it to Parliament on 21 December; on the same day the Ministers took the oath of office.
On Sunday 23 December the interim Government officially came into office when it was acknowledged by the lower house of Parliament with 97 votes in favour. The transitional period came to an end on March 20, 2008, when Yves Leterme
was sworn in as Prime Minister. The new government seemed short-lived as Leterme offered the King his resignation on 15 July 2008. The King refused.
, the process of government formation starts. This process is based on constitutional convention
rather than written law and generally consists of two stages: information and formation. The King consults the presidents of the Chamber of Representatives and the Senate
and a number of prominent politicians in order to discuss the election results. Following these meetings, he appoints an informateur.
The informateur has the task of exploring the various possibilities for a new federal government and for examining which parties can form a majority in the Federal Parliament
. He also meets with prominent people in various fields to hear their views on what policies the new federal government should pursue. The informateur then reports to the King and advises him about the appointment of a formateur
. However, the King can also decide to appoint a second informateur or appoint a royal mediator.
The formateur, who is usually the prospective prime minister is appointed by the King on the basis of the informateur's report. The task of the formateur is to form a new government coalition
and lead the negotiations about the government agreement and the composition of the government. If these negotiations succeed, the formateur presents a new federal government to the King.
- the liberal Open VLD and the centre-left electoral list of Socialist Party – Different (SP.a) and Spirit
- lost the most seats, while the electoral coalition CD&V/N-VA gained the most and the CD&V became the largest party in Flanders and Belgium. The CD&V/N-VA had an electoral program that emphasized the need for far-reaching state reform. Yves Leterme
of the CD&V personally gained 800,000 votes and was considered to be the prospective prime minister. The SP.a, the party that lost the most seats, declared it would prepare itself for a role in the opposition, and would support state reform from that position.
In the French-speaking part of Belgium, the liberal party MR lost some seats but nevertheless became the largest party and replaced the Socialist Party
(PS) as the dominant party for the first time in history. Before he was appointed informateur, Didier Reynders
, the MR party leader, indicated his preference for a coalition of Christian Democratic parties CD&V (Flanders) and CDH (Wallonia) and liberal parties MR (Wallonia) and Open VLD (Flanders) and noted the fact that the PS was no longer the largest francophone party "a state reform in itself". Reynders also emphasized that the MR was the largest political party of the largest political group, as the combined number of seats of liberals in Flanders and French-speaking Belgium (MR + Open VLD) surpassed the combined number of seats of the Christian-democrats (CD&V + CDH).
appointed Reynders as informateur. The CD&V/N-VA caused a minor controversy when they immediately agreed with Reynders to stall constitutional reform until after the coinciding regional and European elections of 2009.
Reynders presented his 170-page final report, titled Develop, unite and protect, to the king on 4 July 2007. It included a list of a record-breaking 450 people he talked to as informateur and contained an inventory of their views. Reynders talked to, among others, Guy Quaden
, the Governor of the National Bank of Belgium
, Joaquin Almunia
, the European Commissioner for Economic & Financial Affairs
, Herman De Croo
, Anne-Marie Lizin
, the leaders of trade union
s and employers' organisations
and several senior civil servants.
on July 5 asked former Prime Minister Jean-Luc Dehaene
to accept a "mediation and negotiation assignment" in order to prepare the ground for the formateur and to look into the possibility of state reform. Dehaene reached the conclusion that only an orange-blue coalition with CD&V
/N-VA, OpenVLD, MR
and Humanist Democratic Centre
was viable.
Initially Dehaene stated there should be a formateur by July 21, the Belgian national holiday, but he ended his assignment prematurely on Sunday July 15, one week before the July 21 deadline. The former mediator said the four orange-blue parties would accept an invitation to coalition talks, but that this did not "mean all obstacles have been removed, far from it!"
as formateur
on Sunday July 15 with the task of forming a new government coalition after Jean-Luc Dehaene
was relieved from his task as mediator and negotiator. On his first day as formateur, Leterme met with outgoing Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt
(Open VLD), the new President of the Chamber of Representatives, Herman Van Rompuy
(CD&V), and the new President of the Senate
, Armand De Decker
(MR
). The following day, Tuesday July 17, Leterme received the presidents of the orange-blue parties: Jo Vandeurzen
(CD&V), Bart De Wever
(N-VA), Didier Reynders
(MR), Bart Somers
(Open VLD) and Joëlle Milquet
(Humanist Democratic Centre
).
On Monday July 23, Formateur Leterme presented his formation memorandum called The Power of People - Turning Challenges Into Opportunities Together. This formation memorandum formed the basis for the real negotiations. It contained 80 pages and 9 chapters about various issues; however, it did not contain a separate chapter on constitutional reform and devolution. In his memorandum, Leterme proposed lowering income taxes for those with low and median incomes, changing the unemployment benefits system, and expanding parental leave
. He also wanted to keep several nuclear power
stations open longer, build 1,500 additional prison cells, and establish an emergency budget for the FPS Justice
to hire more people. The formateur did not want a collective regularisation of illegal aliens
, but proposed the establishment criteria to allow regularisation in individual cases.
proceeded with much difficulty due to differences between Flemish and Francophone parties over constitutional reform, with communautary tensions reached a high on Thursday August 16. Negotiator for Humanist Democratic Centre
Francis Delpérée
described the situation with the following words: "Il y a un parfum de crise" (There is a whiff of crisis). Formal negotiations were temporarily suspended on Friday August 17, following a meeting between the King and the formateur, to allow the King to conduct a series of political consultations. It was the third time since he was appointed formateur that Leterme reported to the King on the progress of the coalition talks. This move was heavily criticised by Johan Vande Lanotte
, the outgoing chairman of the Flemish socialist party SP.A and a professor in constitutional law
, who accused the parties involved in the coalition talks of forcing the King, who is supposed to remain impartial, to play a political role.
That evening, the King received Jo Vandeurzen, the CD&V chairman, and Didier Reynders, the chairman of the MR. The next day the King received the chairpersons of the two other orange-blue parties, Bart Somers (Open Vld) and Joëlle Milquet (CDH), in order to attempt to defuse the tensions. The King did not receive the chairmen of the N-VA and the FDF
; however, Bart De Wever (N-VA) reportedly did receive an exploratory phone call from the Royal Palace. During the weekend, there also were informal consultations between the formateur and all other parties involved in the coalition talks.
's resignation, King Albert asked Didier Reynders
, the chairman of the Francophone liberal party MR
and erstwhile informateur, to seek a way out of the stalemate. At first, the Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroep
(VRT) reported that Philippe Maystadt
or Melchior Wathelet
would probably take over, either as informateur or as royal mediator. The Flemish parties felt it was up to a member of CDH to take an initiative; however, the CDH wanted a Flemish politician to be involved in the mediation efforts as well. It was later reported that, according to observers, King Albert would probably ask Raymond Langendries
(CDH) and Herman De Croo
(Open Vld) to mediate.
On August 24, a survey conducted by VTM
showed that 45.8% of the 1300 Flemings polled wanted Flanders to be declared independent and that 54.2% opposed such an action. The same survey showed that 58% of the respondents thought that the state reform is worth a crisis. Also, 72% could not understand the French-speaking opposition, and 53% thought that Milquet was to blame for the crisis and 15% thought that Leterme was to blame.
On August 25, the King received Herman Van Rompuy
(CD&V), President of the Chamber of Representatives and Armand De Decker
(MR), President of the Senate, and on August 27 the Royal Palace announced that the King would receive several ministers of State
to discuss the political crisis. It was suggested by De Standaard
that the King would not appoint the duo Langendries and De Croo because they were already named too much in the media which caused several politicians, such as Hendrik Bogaert
(CD&V) and Bart De Wever
(N-VA), to object or criticize such a choice. The Open VLD also held a press conference in which Bart Somers
called the remarks about De Croo "inconvenient and unseen". He also said that the problem of the Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde
(BHV) electoral district should be tackled before all other issues, something regarded by the VRT as a direct criticism of Leterme because he did not once mention this problem when he was formateur. Minister of Foreign Affairs Karel De Gucht
, who is a negotiator for Open VLD in the coalition talks, described the government formation as "surrealistic" and added: "Ceci n'est pas une formation".
Jean-Luc Dehaene
, Wilfried Martens
and Philippe Moureaux
were the first ministers of State to be received by the King. A photographer took a picture of a document Dehaene had with him when he arrived at the palace. The document reportedly stated that the state reform should not be an issue during the formation whereas the issue of Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde
should be included in a coalition agreement, and that all elections
(federal, regional and European) should coincide in 2009. On Tuesday August 28, King Albert received Willy Claes
(SP.A), Gérard Deprez
(MR
), Jos Geysels (Groen!
), Philippe Busquin
(PS
), Charles-Ferdinand Nothomb (Humanist Democratic Centre
) and José Daras (Ecolo
). The following day, the King received three more ministers of State: Raymond Langendries
(Humanist Democratic Centre
), Herman De Croo
(Open VLD) and Louis Michel
(MR
).
(CD&V
), the outgoing President of the Chamber of Representatives, and charged him with an exploratory mission in order to find a solution to the political crisis. Van Rompuy was considered by Flemish and French-speaking parties and newspapers as a good choice. He met on August 30 with the presidents of several parties of the orange-blue coalition, in particular Jo Vandeurzen (CD&V), Bart De Wever (N-VA), Bart Somers (Open VLD) and Jöelle Milquet (CDH). On August 31, he met with presidents Didier Reynders (MR), Olivier Maingain, (FDF) and Jean-Michel Javaux (Ecolo). The content of the discussions is unknown as Van Rompuy wanted to communicate and negotiate discreetly. De Standaard noted that Van Rompuy did not talk with a member of the PS, which could mean he wanted to reach the required two-thirds majority for constitutional reform with the ecologists (Ecolo on the French-speaking side) and rather that the PS.
Also on August 30, the Walloon government held its first meeting since the summer holidays. Rudy Demotte
(PS), the minister-president of the Walloon government criticized the long duration of the government formation and was skeptical about whether Van Rompuy would be able to solve the crisis. He also said that he was waiting for formation proposals. On August 31, Milquet said institutional reform was less important than other topics and all French-speaking parties should formulate a common strategy. She also expressed her wish to replace the current "confrontational federalism" with a modern "cooperative federalism". Gérard Deprez
(MCC, a part of the MR just like the FDF) criticized Maingain's (FDF) demand for the territorial expansion of the region of Brussels to several Flemish towns in return for the split of the BHV electoral district. Deprez said in La Libre Belgique that "Maingain acts like the Inquisition and excommunicates everyone that does not share his dogmas".
In an international press meeting, the Flemish nationalist party Vlaams Belang
said that the formation crisis was an example of Belgium's failure to function as a state and that the time had come to declare Flemish independence. On September 1, the Flemish newspaper De Standaard devoted an issue to the question of whether a Flemish secession was realistic and viable. On September 2, during De Gordel
, an annual Flemish cycling event in the periphery of Brussels with a strong political undertone, Eric Van Rompuy
(member of the CD&V and the brother of explorateur Herman) and Bart De Wever (N-VA) emphasized that this should be the last De Gordel in which the problems surrounding the BHV were not solved. Flemish minister Geert Bourgeois (N-VA) also stated that the Flemish majority in the newly elected parliament should urgently solve the problem unilaterally - i.e. without the consent of the French speaking parties and thus without any offers. Other politicians, such as Flemish minister-president Kris Peeters
(CD&V) and federal minister of Internal Affairs Patrick Dewael
(Open VLD) participated in the event, but did not comment on BHV. Prominent absentees were Yves Leterme and Guy Verhofstadt.
On September 3, Ecolo said that three conditions must be met for it to participate in a coalition. First, the party refused to join any coalition involving N-VA. A coalition without the N-VA would "respect the different communities" of Belgium. Second, Groen!, the Flemish ecologists would have to be part of the coalition as well. Third, formation would have to be renegotiated to give the climate change a central place in the coalition programme.
CD&V/N-VA said Ecolo's demands could not "be taken seriously" because the CD&V without the N-VA was unthinkable. They also said the presence of N-VA was not a problem, but that the problem is the unreasonableness of the French-speaking parties to negotiate around the Flemish demands. Groen! said it was unwilling to participate in a coalition in which it is not necessary to obtain a majority in parliament. The need to undertake the negotiations again also meant the agreement between the partners about the prolonged existence of several nuclear power plants had to be reconsidered.
Herman Van Rompuy provided the King a first interim report on September 3. Although his effort to include Ecolo in the coalition failed, Van Rompuy continued his mission despite a general decline in optimism about his likelihood of success of his mission steeply declined. He formulated several proposals that he suggested to the orange-blue parties. On 10 September, Van Rompuy provided the King with a second "interim" report - something that indicated his work would be prolonged.
of the Vlaams Belang
proposed to have an earlier plenary session in the Flemish parliament to discuss the communtarian crisis, a request that was granted. On September 10, under the eyes of the international media, he proposed in the plenary session to prepare a plan for an independent Flanders and to hold a referendum on independence. He said that the Flemish resolutions agreed upon in the Flemish parliament in 1999 (that supported a far-reaching devolution of powers) were a breaking point. He also called Belgium "a country that is terminally ill" and that it was time to say "bye bye Belgium".
Other parties vehemently opposed the course of action, proposed by Dewinter. For instance, Ludwig Caluwé (CD&V) said that the Flemish Interest did not vote for the resolutions in 1999. He added that more power to the regions does not imply the end of inter-regional solidarity. Patrcia Ceysens (Open VLD) said that "the country is not going to split, the parliament is not going to declare independence."
French-speaking politicians and the French-speaking media were enraged about Leterme's remark. Marie Arena
(PS) and Joëlle Milquet
(CDH) interpreted Leterme's remark as making the Flemish youth believe Walloon parties are only interested in money and could be bribed. They also said that the lower VAT
for building schools was already agreed upon in a six-year old accord which was still not executed. Milquet said that Leterme should refrain from giving interviews.
Wilfried Martens
(CD&V) criticized the French-speaking side of the country for misinterpreting a "sign of goodwill" made by Leterme. Karel de Gucht
(Open VLD) said that they do not have a veto right about which Fleming can become prime minister. He also added that they overreacted. "Who takes away his position as prime minister, turns him into a political martyr. I do not feel like competing against a political martyr during the next election. Why should he not be allowed to speak? The campaign waged against him...is unacceptable."
, president of the National Bank of Belgium
, warned on September 13 that the long duration of negotiations were not without a price as much-needed measures in the domains of budget, competition and employment are still not taken. Didier Reynders said that Quaden should occupy himself with "interest rates, not politics". CDH agreed with Quaden. CD&V and Open-VLD also agreed, but said that a good agreement was better than a quick but bad agreement.
Elio Di Rupo
, the president of the PS, sharply criticized the duration of the negotiations. "Three months on from the election, they're not even sitting around the negotiation table. This has never happened before". He continued, "If we would have participated in the talks, negotiations would never have been derailed". Di Rupo also called the talks a "guerilla war" rather than negotiations.
Belgian Minister of State
Louis Tobback
and Trends journalist Geert Noels blamed the Euro
for allowing the formation talks to last this long. Since the Belgian government is no longer in charge of its own monetary policy
, the value of the currency will not be affected by this political crisis, so there is no monetary incentive to force the formation partners to find a quick solution.
(PS) in a tripartite coalition. This was denied by Di Rupo, whilst Didier Reynders absolutely ruled out the MR joining a coalition with the PS. Rumours continued until September 7 when Van Rompuy denied any negotiations on extending the Orange-Blue coalition to include the PS.
On September 14, Jean-Jacques Viseur (CDH), mayor of Charleroi, said that it was wrong to keep the socialists out of the government. On September 16, Open VLD senator Patrik Vankrunkelsven
agreed and openly questioned his party's opposition to the participation of the socialists in government. He said that as long as the PS is an opposition party, the MR will not make any concessions on state reform.
On September 17, it was revealed that Van Rompuy had used Jean-Luc Dehaene
to contact the PS secretly a week earlier. Dehaene met Elio Di Rupo and enquired as to whether the PS would support some parts of a state reform from opposition, as the SP.a has said it will. Di Rupo declined to support reforms as long as the PS is not a member of the coalition.
of power. Van Rompuy's spokesman said that such a widening of his mandate was not being considered.
Open VLD and CD&V supported the French-speaking proposal. CD&V added that a widening of his role can only happen if Van Rompuy remains an explorer, does not become a formateur and does not negotiate. Jo Vandeurzen (CD&V) also emphasized that Leterme remains the prime minister designate. VLD responded that they did not have any intention to undermine the position of Leterme.
relieved him of his exploratory mission. Later that day, King Albert II again appointed Yves Leterme
as formateur
. On Friday, 5 October, Leterme provided the King his first interim report, after which negotiations with all orange-blue parties began.
, Wallonia and Brussels
; or to monetary affairs. Chairman Pieter De Crem
(Christian Democratic and Flemish
) of the Belgian Chamber Committee on the Interior
had decided to go ahead with a vote on the split of electoral district Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde
. The six Francophone committee members walked out in protest. The 11 Dutch-speaking members continued the meeting, and voted in favour of the split, with only Tinne Van der Straeten
(Groen!) abstaining.
The Francophone parties subsequently invoked a procedure known as the conflict of interest , a procedure whereby a regional parliament can indicate that it feels that the interests of the region are hurt by the decision of another political body in Belgium, in this case the Belgian Chamber Committee on the Interior. The Parliament of the French Community of Belgium
approved the procedure on November 9, with three members of the National Front
abstaining. This suspends a decision about Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde for a period of 60 days.
to "start a dialogue" on the matter. In a joint statement, the parties CD&V and N-VA rejected the decision, and stated they would only join a government if there were "guarantees for big state reform."
On November 12, the King met with the chairmen of the socialist parties SP.A and PS, and the green parties Groen! and Ecolo, who would be part of the opposition if the orange-blue government were to be formed. The purpose of the meeting was to see whether the parties were willing to take part in a Committee of Wise Men that would examine the possibilities for state reform. SP.A chairwoman Caroline Gennez
declined the offer, saying it was not the job of her party to make an orange-blue government possible. She called the Council of Wise Men "not a way towards a solution to state reform, but a getaway route to nowhere." Mieke Vogels
, chairwoman of Groen!, stated her party would not give the new government a "blank check" for state reform. Chairman Elio di Rupo
of the PS said he wanted to see the "menu" of the Committee of Wise Men first; "without a serious menu, [the Committee of Wise Men] risks becoming a talking shop."
The next day, the King met with the chairmen of CD&V, CDH, Open VLD and MR, and with Chamber of Representatives chairman Herman Van Rompuy
(CD&V) and Senate
chairman Armand De Decker
(MR), to discuss ways to start dialogue on state reform.
CD&V's partner party in the negotiations, N-VA, was not invited, neither was FDF
, which is affiliated with MR. The chairmen of right-wing parties Flemish Interest, List Dedecker and FN - who would be in opposition if the orange-blue government was to be formed - were not invited either.
One of the instructions the King had given to De Decker and Van Rompuy, was to find a way to start a dialogue on state reform. In an interview with RTBF
on November 14, Armand De Decker said he and Karel Van Rompuy wanted to establish a National Committee of Dialogue . The committee would consist of prominent politicians of the Christian-democratic, liberal, socialist and green parties, who together have a two-thirds majority in both the Chamber of Representatives and the Senate. Van Rompuy stated that nothing had been agreed upon, and that De Decker had spoken in his own name.
Several politicians had suggested a tripartite government of liberal, Christian-democratic and socialist parties. The newspapers Gazet van Antwerpen
and Het Belang van Limburg
reported on November 13 that the CD&V was leaning towards that option as well. Party spokesman Peter Poulussen denounced the reports as "pure speculation," and Open VLD and MR rejected the idea of a tripartite government.
Bruno De Wever, professor at the Ghent University
and brother of N-VA
chairman Bart De Wever
on 17 November stated on Kanaal Z, a Flemish
business television channel
, that "a periphery around Brussels
where 80% speaks French
, is not Flemish." He said that a compromise should be worked with an increase in social and economic competences for Flanders in exchange for the expansion of the bilingual Brussels-Capital Region. Bruno De Wever also said that it is hard to continue to call a municipality where a large majority of the population speaks French a Flemish municipality.
Interior Minister Marino Keulen
(Open VLD) announced on November 14 that he had decided not to appoint the French
-speaking mayors of Kraainem
, Linkebeek
and Wezembeek-Oppem
, three municipalities with linguistic facilities
in the Flemish Periphery of Brussels
, because they had sent letters of convocation (letters calling citizens to vote and informing them where their polling station is) in French for the 2006 municipal elections
and the 2007 federal election
. This was a violation of rules established by the Flemish Government
. The three mayors are all members of the FDF
. Marino Keulen will ask the municipal councils of these municipalities to nominate a new mayor for appointment.
The three mayors also violated language legislation
by allowing French to be spoken during the meetings of the municipal councils of Kraainem, Linkebeek and Wezembeek-Oppem on Monday 22 October 2007, which Minister Marino Keulen described as a provocation.
Myriam Delacroix-Rolin (CDH
), the Mayor of Sint-Genesius-Rode
, another municipality with linguistic facilities, will be appointed; her municipality had only sent letters of convocation in French for the 2006 municipal elections.
The Francophone political parties put forth a united declaration in the Walloon parliament on November 16, calling the act by Flemish minister Keulen "a rejection of democracy." The appointment of the mayors should be seen in the broader perspective of the Brussels' periphery, the declaration stated. Damien Thiery, the Mayor of Linkebeek, announced the following day that he will again be presented for appointment as Mayor.
On 30 November 2007, Leterme made a final proposal with three questions; he requested positive responses to all questions by all parties in order to continue negotiations. The questions were:
The French-speaking party CDH gave no response to all three questions, and FDF did not accept the transfer of business tax regulations to the regions. Faced with this defeat, on 1 December 2007 Leterme gave his resignation as formateur to the King, which the King accepted.
, who remains the head of government, was received by the King on 1 December. He was one of many politicians who could be asked by the King to try to seek a new consensus between Dutch and French-speaking parties. After visiting the royal palace twice on 3 December, prime minister Verhofstadt was nominated informateur by the King, although with a smaller role than an informateur usually plays. Verhofstadt stated he was hesitant at first to accept the job.
and
Chamber of Representatives, Herman Van Rompuy and Armand De Decker respectively. The chairman have already been given the task by the Belgian King to organize a convention on constitutional reform, with members from the Belgian political class. Verhofstadt also met with the leaders of the largest political parties, followed by the smaller political parties on December 5. The main political parties have not ruled out a tripartite coalition, although Verhofstadt's own party, Open VLD, has come out against such arrangement. List Dedecker has declared it will not support Verhofstadt's endeavours, and wants to see new elections instead. Vlaams Belang
and the Front National
were not invited by Verhofstadt.
There were several difficulties associated with forming a temporary government. On the French-speaking side, the MR opposed a government that included all French-speaking parties. On the Flemish side, the VLD opposed the participation of the SP.a, the Flemish socialist party.
was asked by the King to start the formation of an "interim government" that would last until 23 March 2008.
On the morning of 18 December, Verhofstadt met with CDH head Joëlle Milquet
and offered the party a part in an interim Government through a person outside the party, a move that confirmed the refusal by MR
to a full participation of cdH in the interim Government. In reaction, CDH called a party meeting, soon followed by a press conference where cdH announced its withdrawal from formation talks. The move was followed in the afternoon by a call for francophone unity by PS
head Elio di Rupo
that announced it will not take part in a Government without CDH. Later in the afternoon, CD&V head Jo Vandeurzen
and Yves Leterme
requested a meeting with Verhofstadt where they call for an inclusion of CDH in the coalition. MR thus remained the only party opposing a deal that would include CDH, Verhofstadt decided to meet with Milquet again in the evening and bring back his morning proposal of a participation of CDH in the Government through an external actor, but added that this Minister would have the rank though not the title of Deputy Prime Minister. Milquet and her party met and agreed on this proposal.
In the early hours of 19 December, Belga News Agency
announced a deal had been struck by all parties and an interim Government was to be formed by 21 December and approved by Parliament by 23 December. Later in the day, it was confirmed Guy Verhofstadt would address the Parliament on 21 December with a General Policy Declaration. It was also announced the legal 48-hour delay following the declaration would lead the Parliament to vote its confidence to the interim Government on 23 December. The interim Government officially came into office when it was acknowledged by the lower house of Parliament with 97 votes in favour, 46 against on Sunday 23 December 2007.
Belgian general election, 2007
The 2007 Belgian general election took place on Sunday 10 June 2007. Voters went to the polls in order to elect new members for the Chamber of Representatives and Senate.Eligible voters were Belgian citizens 18 years and older...
of 10 June 2007, and consisted of a period of negotiation in which the Flemish parties Flemish Liberal Democratic (Open VLD), Christian Democratic and Flemish
Christian Democratic and Flemish
The Christian Democratic and Flemish is a political party of Belgium, formerly called Christian People's Party...
(CD&V) and New Flemish Alliance (N-VA), and the French-speaking parties Reformist Movement
Reformist Movement
The Reformist Movement is a French-speaking liberal political party in Belgium. The party was in coalition as part of the Leterme II Government, and was also part of the governing coalition in the Walloon Region and Brussels-Capital Region until the 2004 regional elections...
(MR), Democratic Front of Francophones
Democratic Front of Francophones
The Francophone Democratic Federalists , is a Francophone political party based in Brussels, Belgium founded on 11 May 1964. Until 1982, the FDF dominated Brussels' municipal politics. It is led by Deputy Olivier Maingain....
(FDF) and Humanist Democratic Centre
Humanist Democratic Centre
The Humanist Democratic Centre is a Francophone Christian democratic political party in Belgium. The cdH currently participates in the Government of the Brussels-Capital Region, the Government of the French Community and the Walloon Government.- History :...
(CdH) negotiated to form a government coalition. The negotiations were characterized by the disagreement between the Dutch
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
- and French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
-speaking parties about the need for and nature of a constitutional reform
State reform in Belgium
The term State reform in the Belgian context indicates a process towards finding constitutional and legal solutions for the problems and tensions between the different segments of the Belgian population, mostly Dutch-speakers of Flanders and French-speakers of Wallonia...
. According to some, this political conflict could have led to a partition of Belgium
Partition of Belgium
The partition of Belgium, or the dissolution of the Belgian state through the separation of the Dutch-speaking people of the Flanders region and Brussels from the French-speaking people of the Walloon region and Brussels, granting them either independence or respective accession to the Netherlands...
.
On November 6, the formation talks became the longest in Belgian history. When the Parliament confirmed the formation of an interim Government, it had been 196 days since the Belgian people had voted out the previous coalition. It was the second longest formation period in European history, after the Dutch record of 208 days in 1977. Talks were interrupted twice by the resignation of the formateur
Formateur
A formateur is a politician who is appointed by the head of state to lead the formation of a coalition government, after either a general election or the collapse of a previous government. The role of the formateur is especially important in the politics of Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg,...
, which left the political parties waiting for a new appointment by the King
Monarchy of Belgium
Monarchy in Belgium is constitutional and popular in nature. The hereditary monarch, at present Albert II, is the head of state and is officially called King of the Belgians .-Origins:...
. Guy Verhofstadt
Guy Verhofstadt
Guy Verhofstadt is a Belgian politician who was the 47th Prime Minister of Belgium from 1999 to 2008. He is currently a Member of the European Parliament and leader of the Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe.- Early career :...
was appointed as mediator on December 3, with the task not only of looking into the formation of a new government, but also of investigating how the government could handle certain urgent policy matters. Pressed by time, and some say by the King, on 19 December Verhofstadt concluded a deal on a Government and presented it to Parliament on 21 December; on the same day the Ministers took the oath of office.
On Sunday 23 December the interim Government officially came into office when it was acknowledged by the lower house of Parliament with 97 votes in favour. The transitional period came to an end on March 20, 2008, when Yves Leterme
Yves Leterme
Yves Camille Désiré Leterme is a Flemish Belgian politician, a leader of the Christian Democratic and Flemish party , and the 48th Prime Minister of Belgium.Leterme was the Prime Minister of Belgium from March 2008 to December 2008...
was sworn in as Prime Minister. The new government seemed short-lived as Leterme offered the King his resignation on 15 July 2008. The King refused.
Conventions
After a federal electionElections in Belgium
Elections in Belgium gives information on election and election results in Belgium.Belgium elects its bicameral federal legislature, the Federal Parliament Elections in Belgium gives information on election and election results in Belgium.Belgium elects its bicameral federal legislature, the...
, the process of government formation starts. This process is based on constitutional convention
Constitutional convention (political custom)
A constitutional convention is an informal and uncodified procedural agreement that is followed by the institutions of a state. In some states, notably those Commonwealth of Nations states that follow the Westminster system and whose political systems derive from British constitutional law, most...
rather than written law and generally consists of two stages: information and formation. The King consults the presidents of the Chamber of Representatives and the Senate
Belgian Senate
The Belgian Senate is one of the two chambers of the bicameral Federal Parliament of Belgium, the other being the Chamber of Representatives. It is considered to be the "upper house" of the Federal Parliament.-History and future:...
and a number of prominent politicians in order to discuss the election results. Following these meetings, he appoints an informateur.
The informateur has the task of exploring the various possibilities for a new federal government and for examining which parties can form a majority in the Federal Parliament
Belgian Federal Parliament
The Belgian Federal Parliament is a bicameral parliament. It consists of the Chamber of Representatives and the Senate . It sits in the Palace of the Nation .- Chamber of Representatives :...
. He also meets with prominent people in various fields to hear their views on what policies the new federal government should pursue. The informateur then reports to the King and advises him about the appointment of a formateur
Formateur
A formateur is a politician who is appointed by the head of state to lead the formation of a coalition government, after either a general election or the collapse of a previous government. The role of the formateur is especially important in the politics of Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg,...
. However, the King can also decide to appoint a second informateur or appoint a royal mediator.
The formateur, who is usually the prospective prime minister is appointed by the King on the basis of the informateur's report. The task of the formateur is to form a new government coalition
Coalition government
A coalition government is a cabinet of a parliamentary government in which several political parties cooperate. The usual reason given for this arrangement is that no party on its own can achieve a majority in the parliament...
and lead the negotiations about the government agreement and the composition of the government. If these negotiations succeed, the formateur presents a new federal government to the King.
Parties involved in the 2007 government formation
| From | Until | Name | Party | Function |
| June 13, 2007 | July 4, 2007 | Didier Reynders Didier Reynders Didier J.L. Reynders is a Belgian politician and a member of the Mouvement Réformateur . He is Belgian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance and Institutional Reforms in the Van Rompuy I Government, which took office on 30 December 2008.He was born in Liège as the youngest in a family of... |
MR Reformist Movement The Reformist Movement is a French-speaking liberal political party in Belgium. The party was in coalition as part of the Leterme II Government, and was also part of the governing coalition in the Walloon Region and Brussels-Capital Region until the 2004 regional elections... |
informateur |
| July 5, 2007 | July 15, 2007 | Jean-Luc Dehaene Jean-Luc Dehaene -Early life and political career:He was born in Montpellier, France, when his parents were fleeing German troops. He got into politics through the Algemeen Christelijk Werknemersverbond , a trade union which was closely linked to the Christelijke Volkspartij .In 1981, he became Minister of Social... |
CD&V Christian Democratic and Flemish The Christian Democratic and Flemish is a political party of Belgium, formerly called Christian People's Party... |
mediator |
| July 15, 2007 | August 23, 2007 | Yves Leterme Yves Leterme Yves Camille Désiré Leterme is a Flemish Belgian politician, a leader of the Christian Democratic and Flemish party , and the 48th Prime Minister of Belgium.Leterme was the Prime Minister of Belgium from March 2008 to December 2008... |
CD&V Christian Democratic and Flemish The Christian Democratic and Flemish is a political party of Belgium, formerly called Christian People's Party... |
formateur Formateur A formateur is a politician who is appointed by the head of state to lead the formation of a coalition government, after either a general election or the collapse of a previous government. The role of the formateur is especially important in the politics of Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg,... |
| August 29, 2007 | September 29, 2007 | Herman Van Rompuy Herman Van Rompuy Herman Achille Van Rompuy is the first long-term and full-time President of the European Council... |
CD&V Christian Democratic and Flemish The Christian Democratic and Flemish is a political party of Belgium, formerly called Christian People's Party... |
explorator |
| September 29, 2007 | December 1, 2007 | Yves Leterme Yves Leterme Yves Camille Désiré Leterme is a Flemish Belgian politician, a leader of the Christian Democratic and Flemish party , and the 48th Prime Minister of Belgium.Leterme was the Prime Minister of Belgium from March 2008 to December 2008... |
CD&V Christian Democratic and Flemish The Christian Democratic and Flemish is a political party of Belgium, formerly called Christian People's Party... |
formateur Formateur A formateur is a politician who is appointed by the head of state to lead the formation of a coalition government, after either a general election or the collapse of a previous government. The role of the formateur is especially important in the politics of Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg,... |
| December 4, 2007 | December 17, 2007 | Guy Verhofstadt Guy Verhofstadt Guy Verhofstadt is a Belgian politician who was the 47th Prime Minister of Belgium from 1999 to 2008. He is currently a Member of the European Parliament and leader of the Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe.- Early career :... |
VLD Flemish Liberals and Democrats ' , commonly known as Open VLD and also simply as the VLD, is a Flemish liberal political party in Belgium, created in 1992 from the former Party for Freedom and Progress and a few other politicians from other parties. The party led the government for three cabinets under Guy Verhofstadt from 1999... |
informateur |
| December 17, 2007 | December 23, 2007 | Guy Verhofstadt Guy Verhofstadt Guy Verhofstadt is a Belgian politician who was the 47th Prime Minister of Belgium from 1999 to 2008. He is currently a Member of the European Parliament and leader of the Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe.- Early career :... |
VLD Flemish Liberals and Democrats ' , commonly known as Open VLD and also simply as the VLD, is a Flemish liberal political party in Belgium, created in 1992 from the former Party for Freedom and Progress and a few other politicians from other parties. The party led the government for three cabinets under Guy Verhofstadt from 1999... |
formateur Formateur A formateur is a politician who is appointed by the head of state to lead the formation of a coalition government, after either a general election or the collapse of a previous government. The role of the formateur is especially important in the politics of Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg,... |
| From | Until | Name | Party | Function |
| July 12, 1999 | June 11, 2007 | Guy Verhofstadt Guy Verhofstadt Guy Verhofstadt is a Belgian politician who was the 47th Prime Minister of Belgium from 1999 to 2008. He is currently a Member of the European Parliament and leader of the Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe.- Early career :... |
VLD Flemish Liberals and Democrats ' , commonly known as Open VLD and also simply as the VLD, is a Flemish liberal political party in Belgium, created in 1992 from the former Party for Freedom and Progress and a few other politicians from other parties. The party led the government for three cabinets under Guy Verhofstadt from 1999... |
Prime Minister (PM) |
| June 11, 2007 | December 23, 2007 | Guy Verhofstadt Guy Verhofstadt Guy Verhofstadt is a Belgian politician who was the 47th Prime Minister of Belgium from 1999 to 2008. He is currently a Member of the European Parliament and leader of the Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe.- Early career :... |
VLD Flemish Liberals and Democrats ' , commonly known as Open VLD and also simply as the VLD, is a Flemish liberal political party in Belgium, created in 1992 from the former Party for Freedom and Progress and a few other politicians from other parties. The party led the government for three cabinets under Guy Verhofstadt from 1999... |
resigning PM |
| December 23, 2007 | March 20, 2008 | Guy Verhofstadt Guy Verhofstadt Guy Verhofstadt is a Belgian politician who was the 47th Prime Minister of Belgium from 1999 to 2008. He is currently a Member of the European Parliament and leader of the Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe.- Early career :... |
VLD Flemish Liberals and Democrats ' , commonly known as Open VLD and also simply as the VLD, is a Flemish liberal political party in Belgium, created in 1992 from the former Party for Freedom and Progress and a few other politicians from other parties. The party led the government for three cabinets under Guy Verhofstadt from 1999... |
Prime Minister (PM) |
| March 20, 2008 | December 30, 2008 | Yves Leterme Yves Leterme Yves Camille Désiré Leterme is a Flemish Belgian politician, a leader of the Christian Democratic and Flemish party , and the 48th Prime Minister of Belgium.Leterme was the Prime Minister of Belgium from March 2008 to December 2008... |
CD&V | Prime Minister (PM) |
- Armand De DeckerArmand De DeckerArmand De Decker, born in Uccle, 8 October 1948, is a Belgian politician and member of the French-speaking liberal party Mouvement Réformateur .De Decker studied law at the Université Libre de Bruxelles and practised law.-Political career:...
(MRReformist MovementThe Reformist Movement is a French-speaking liberal political party in Belgium. The party was in coalition as part of the Leterme II Government, and was also part of the governing coalition in the Walloon Region and Brussels-Capital Region until the 2004 regional elections...
), President of the SenateBelgian SenateThe Belgian Senate is one of the two chambers of the bicameral Federal Parliament of Belgium, the other being the Chamber of Representatives. It is considered to be the "upper house" of the Federal Parliament.-History and future:...
, was asked by the King to start an inter-community dialogue together with Herman Van Rompuy. - Bart De WeverBart De WeverBart Albert Liliane De Wever is a Belgian politician and since 2004 has been the president of the New Flemish Alliance , a Flemish party that strives for an independent Flanders in a united Europe. He has also been a member of the Flemish parliament since 2004...
, leader of the New Flemish Alliance (Flemish nationalist). - Yves LetermeYves LetermeYves Camille Désiré Leterme is a Flemish Belgian politician, a leader of the Christian Democratic and Flemish party , and the 48th Prime Minister of Belgium.Leterme was the Prime Minister of Belgium from March 2008 to December 2008...
, frontman of the CD&V, has been appointed formateur twice by the King. - Olivier MaingainOlivier MaingainOlivier D.A.Gh. Maingain is a Belgian francophone politician and president of the Front Démocratique des Francophones , a wing of the French-speaking liberal party Reformist Movement .-Biography:...
, leader of the FDFDemocratic Front of FrancophonesThe Francophone Democratic Federalists , is a Francophone political party based in Brussels, Belgium founded on 11 May 1964. Until 1982, the FDF dominated Brussels' municipal politics. It is led by Deputy Olivier Maingain....
(Walloon nationalist). - Joëlle MilquetJoëlle MilquetJoëlle F.G.M. Milquet is a Belgian politician from the Humanist Democratic Centre .-Education:...
, leader of the Walloon Christian Democratic party (CDH). (nicknamed Madame Non by the Flemish press) - Didier ReyndersDidier ReyndersDidier J.L. Reynders is a Belgian politician and a member of the Mouvement Réformateur . He is Belgian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance and Institutional Reforms in the Van Rompuy I Government, which took office on 30 December 2008.He was born in Liège as the youngest in a family of...
, leader of the Walloon Liberal party (MR), has been appointed informateur. - Bart SomersBart SomersBartolomeus Jozef Lodewijk Rosalia "Bart" Somers is a Belgian, Flemish politician. He is currently the mayor of Mechelen...
, leader of the Flemish Liberal party (Open VLD). - Jo VandeurzenJo VandeurzenJohan Maria Gerardus "Jo" Vandeurzen is a Belgian politician, member of Christen-Democratisch en Vlaams , a centrist Flemish Christian Democratic party. He was the Belgian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Justice and Institutional Reforms in the Leterme I Government , which took office on 20...
, leader of the Flemish Christian Democratic party (CD&V). - Herman Van RompuyHerman Van RompuyHerman Achille Van Rompuy is the first long-term and full-time President of the European Council...
(CD&V), President of the Chamber of Representatives, was appointed explorator after the first failure of the formateur and was later asked by the King to start a communautary dialogue together with Armand De Decker. - Guy VerhofstadtGuy VerhofstadtGuy Verhofstadt is a Belgian politician who was the 47th Prime Minister of Belgium from 1999 to 2008. He is currently a Member of the European Parliament and leader of the Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe.- Early career :...
(Open VLD), Prime Minister of Belgium, was appointed informateur on December 3, 2007 and formateur of an interim government on December 17, 2007.
Election and immediate aftermath, 10 – 13 June
On June 10, federal elections were held in Belgium. In Flanders, the ruling purple coalitionPurple (government)
Purple is a common term in politics for governments or other political entities consisting of parties that have red and blue as their political colours...
- the liberal Open VLD and the centre-left electoral list of Socialist Party – Different (SP.a) and Spirit
Spirit (Belgium)
' was a Belgian Flemish political party formed after dissolution of the moderate nationalist People's Union party. Prior to 19 April 2008 it was known as Spirit, and intermediately as Flemish Progressives...
- lost the most seats, while the electoral coalition CD&V/N-VA gained the most and the CD&V became the largest party in Flanders and Belgium. The CD&V/N-VA had an electoral program that emphasized the need for far-reaching state reform. Yves Leterme
Yves Leterme
Yves Camille Désiré Leterme is a Flemish Belgian politician, a leader of the Christian Democratic and Flemish party , and the 48th Prime Minister of Belgium.Leterme was the Prime Minister of Belgium from March 2008 to December 2008...
of the CD&V personally gained 800,000 votes and was considered to be the prospective prime minister. The SP.a, the party that lost the most seats, declared it would prepare itself for a role in the opposition, and would support state reform from that position.
In the French-speaking part of Belgium, the liberal party MR lost some seats but nevertheless became the largest party and replaced the Socialist Party
Socialist Party (francophone Belgium)
The Socialist Party is a Francophone social-democratic political party in Belgium. As of the 2010 elections, it is the second largest party in the Belgian Chamber of Representatives and the largest Francophone party...
(PS) as the dominant party for the first time in history. Before he was appointed informateur, Didier Reynders
Didier Reynders
Didier J.L. Reynders is a Belgian politician and a member of the Mouvement Réformateur . He is Belgian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance and Institutional Reforms in the Van Rompuy I Government, which took office on 30 December 2008.He was born in Liège as the youngest in a family of...
, the MR party leader, indicated his preference for a coalition of Christian Democratic parties CD&V (Flanders) and CDH (Wallonia) and liberal parties MR (Wallonia) and Open VLD (Flanders) and noted the fact that the PS was no longer the largest francophone party "a state reform in itself". Reynders also emphasized that the MR was the largest political party of the largest political group, as the combined number of seats of liberals in Flanders and French-speaking Belgium (MR + Open VLD) surpassed the combined number of seats of the Christian-democrats (CD&V + CDH).
First information round, 13 June – 4 July
On 13 June 2007, King Albert IIAlbert II of Belgium
Albert II is the current reigning King of the Belgians, a constitutional monarch. He is a member of the royal house "of Belgium"; formerly this house was named Saxe-Coburg-Gotha...
appointed Reynders as informateur. The CD&V/N-VA caused a minor controversy when they immediately agreed with Reynders to stall constitutional reform until after the coinciding regional and European elections of 2009.
Reynders presented his 170-page final report, titled Develop, unite and protect, to the king on 4 July 2007. It included a list of a record-breaking 450 people he talked to as informateur and contained an inventory of their views. Reynders talked to, among others, Guy Quaden
Guy Quaden
Guy, Baron Quaden is a Belgian economist and since 1 March 1999 Governor of the National Bank of Belgium. He is a member of the Council of governing board and of the general Council of the European Central Bank...
, the Governor of the National Bank of Belgium
National Bank of Belgium
The National Bank of Belgium has been the central bank of Belgium since 1850...
, Joaquin Almunia
Joaquín Almunia
Joaquín Almunia Amann is a Spanish politician and prominent member of the European Commission, currently responsible for Competition under the second mandate of President Barroso. He was previously responsible for Economic and Monetary Affairs in Barroso's previous mandate...
, the European Commissioner for Economic & Financial Affairs
European Commissioner for Economic & Financial Affairs
The Commissioner for Economic and Monetary Affairs and the Euro is the member of the European Commission responsible for economic and financial affairs. The current Commissioner is Olli Rehn .-Responsibilities:...
, Herman De Croo
Herman De Croo
Herman Francies Joseph De Croo is a Belgian liberal politician. He is a member of the Open VLD. He is the father of current Open VLD chairman Alexander De Croo....
, Anne-Marie Lizin
Anne-Marie Lizin
Anne-Marie Lizin is a Belgian politician. She used to be member of the Socialist Party but was banned from the party after a corruption case. She was the first female President of the Belgian Senate...
, the leaders of trade union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
s and employers' organisations
Employers' organization
An employers' organization, employers' association or employers' federation is an association of employers. A trade union, which organizes employees is the opposite of an employers' organization...
and several senior civil servants.
Mediation round, 5 – 15 July
Following the informateur's report, King Albert IIAlbert II of Belgium
Albert II is the current reigning King of the Belgians, a constitutional monarch. He is a member of the royal house "of Belgium"; formerly this house was named Saxe-Coburg-Gotha...
on July 5 asked former Prime Minister Jean-Luc Dehaene
Jean-Luc Dehaene
-Early life and political career:He was born in Montpellier, France, when his parents were fleeing German troops. He got into politics through the Algemeen Christelijk Werknemersverbond , a trade union which was closely linked to the Christelijke Volkspartij .In 1981, he became Minister of Social...
to accept a "mediation and negotiation assignment" in order to prepare the ground for the formateur and to look into the possibility of state reform. Dehaene reached the conclusion that only an orange-blue coalition with CD&V
Christian Democratic and Flemish
The Christian Democratic and Flemish is a political party of Belgium, formerly called Christian People's Party...
/N-VA, OpenVLD, MR
Reformist Movement
The Reformist Movement is a French-speaking liberal political party in Belgium. The party was in coalition as part of the Leterme II Government, and was also part of the governing coalition in the Walloon Region and Brussels-Capital Region until the 2004 regional elections...
and Humanist Democratic Centre
Humanist Democratic Centre
The Humanist Democratic Centre is a Francophone Christian democratic political party in Belgium. The cdH currently participates in the Government of the Brussels-Capital Region, the Government of the French Community and the Walloon Government.- History :...
was viable.
Initially Dehaene stated there should be a formateur by July 21, the Belgian national holiday, but he ended his assignment prematurely on Sunday July 15, one week before the July 21 deadline. The former mediator said the four orange-blue parties would accept an invitation to coalition talks, but that this did not "mean all obstacles have been removed, far from it!"
Leterme begins his mission
The King then appointed Yves LetermeYves Leterme
Yves Camille Désiré Leterme is a Flemish Belgian politician, a leader of the Christian Democratic and Flemish party , and the 48th Prime Minister of Belgium.Leterme was the Prime Minister of Belgium from March 2008 to December 2008...
as formateur
Formateur
A formateur is a politician who is appointed by the head of state to lead the formation of a coalition government, after either a general election or the collapse of a previous government. The role of the formateur is especially important in the politics of Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg,...
on Sunday July 15 with the task of forming a new government coalition after Jean-Luc Dehaene
Jean-Luc Dehaene
-Early life and political career:He was born in Montpellier, France, when his parents were fleeing German troops. He got into politics through the Algemeen Christelijk Werknemersverbond , a trade union which was closely linked to the Christelijke Volkspartij .In 1981, he became Minister of Social...
was relieved from his task as mediator and negotiator. On his first day as formateur, Leterme met with outgoing Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt
Guy Verhofstadt
Guy Verhofstadt is a Belgian politician who was the 47th Prime Minister of Belgium from 1999 to 2008. He is currently a Member of the European Parliament and leader of the Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe.- Early career :...
(Open VLD), the new President of the Chamber of Representatives, Herman Van Rompuy
Herman Van Rompuy
Herman Achille Van Rompuy is the first long-term and full-time President of the European Council...
(CD&V), and the new President of the Senate
Belgian Senate
The Belgian Senate is one of the two chambers of the bicameral Federal Parliament of Belgium, the other being the Chamber of Representatives. It is considered to be the "upper house" of the Federal Parliament.-History and future:...
, Armand De Decker
Armand De Decker
Armand De Decker, born in Uccle, 8 October 1948, is a Belgian politician and member of the French-speaking liberal party Mouvement Réformateur .De Decker studied law at the Université Libre de Bruxelles and practised law.-Political career:...
(MR
Reformist Movement
The Reformist Movement is a French-speaking liberal political party in Belgium. The party was in coalition as part of the Leterme II Government, and was also part of the governing coalition in the Walloon Region and Brussels-Capital Region until the 2004 regional elections...
). The following day, Tuesday July 17, Leterme received the presidents of the orange-blue parties: Jo Vandeurzen
Jo Vandeurzen
Johan Maria Gerardus "Jo" Vandeurzen is a Belgian politician, member of Christen-Democratisch en Vlaams , a centrist Flemish Christian Democratic party. He was the Belgian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Justice and Institutional Reforms in the Leterme I Government , which took office on 20...
(CD&V), Bart De Wever
Bart De Wever
Bart Albert Liliane De Wever is a Belgian politician and since 2004 has been the president of the New Flemish Alliance , a Flemish party that strives for an independent Flanders in a united Europe. He has also been a member of the Flemish parliament since 2004...
(N-VA), Didier Reynders
Didier Reynders
Didier J.L. Reynders is a Belgian politician and a member of the Mouvement Réformateur . He is Belgian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance and Institutional Reforms in the Van Rompuy I Government, which took office on 30 December 2008.He was born in Liège as the youngest in a family of...
(MR), Bart Somers
Bart Somers
Bartolomeus Jozef Lodewijk Rosalia "Bart" Somers is a Belgian, Flemish politician. He is currently the mayor of Mechelen...
(Open VLD) and Joëlle Milquet
Joëlle Milquet
Joëlle F.G.M. Milquet is a Belgian politician from the Humanist Democratic Centre .-Education:...
(Humanist Democratic Centre
Humanist Democratic Centre
The Humanist Democratic Centre is a Francophone Christian democratic political party in Belgium. The cdH currently participates in the Government of the Brussels-Capital Region, the Government of the French Community and the Walloon Government.- History :...
).
On Monday July 23, Formateur Leterme presented his formation memorandum called The Power of People - Turning Challenges Into Opportunities Together. This formation memorandum formed the basis for the real negotiations. It contained 80 pages and 9 chapters about various issues; however, it did not contain a separate chapter on constitutional reform and devolution. In his memorandum, Leterme proposed lowering income taxes for those with low and median incomes, changing the unemployment benefits system, and expanding parental leave
Parental leave
Parental leave is an employee benefit that provides paid or unpaid time off work to care for a child or make arrangements for the child's welfare. Often, the term parental leave includes maternity, paternity, and adoption leave...
. He also wanted to keep several nuclear power
Nuclear power
Nuclear power is the use of sustained nuclear fission to generate heat and electricity. Nuclear power plants provide about 6% of the world's energy and 13–14% of the world's electricity, with the U.S., France, and Japan together accounting for about 50% of nuclear generated electricity...
stations open longer, build 1,500 additional prison cells, and establish an emergency budget for the FPS Justice
FPS Justice Belgium
The FPS Justice , formerly the Ministry of Justice, is a Federal Public Service of Belgium. It was created by Royal Order on May 23, 2001, as part of the plans of the first Verhofstadt Government to modernise the federal administration...
to hire more people. The formateur did not want a collective regularisation of illegal aliens
Illegal immigration
Illegal immigration is the migration into a nation in violation of the immigration laws of that jurisdiction. Illegal immigration raises many political, economical and social issues and has become a source of major controversy in developed countries and the more successful developing countries.In...
, but proposed the establishment criteria to allow regularisation in individual cases.
Suspension of negotiations and consultations by the King
Coalition talks at Valley of the DuchessCastle of the Valley of the Duchess
The Castle of Val-Duchesse is a former priory situated in the municipality of Auderghem in the Brussels Capital Region of Belgium. The castle is owned by the Belgian Royal Trust....
proceeded with much difficulty due to differences between Flemish and Francophone parties over constitutional reform, with communautary tensions reached a high on Thursday August 16. Negotiator for Humanist Democratic Centre
Humanist Democratic Centre
The Humanist Democratic Centre is a Francophone Christian democratic political party in Belgium. The cdH currently participates in the Government of the Brussels-Capital Region, the Government of the French Community and the Walloon Government.- History :...
Francis Delpérée
Francis Delpérée
Francis Delpérée is a Belgian politician and a member of the cdH. He was elected as a member of the Belgian Senate in 2007.-Notes:...
described the situation with the following words: "Il y a un parfum de crise" (There is a whiff of crisis). Formal negotiations were temporarily suspended on Friday August 17, following a meeting between the King and the formateur, to allow the King to conduct a series of political consultations. It was the third time since he was appointed formateur that Leterme reported to the King on the progress of the coalition talks. This move was heavily criticised by Johan Vande Lanotte
Johan Vande Lanotte
Johan Cyrille Corneel Vande Lanotte is a Belgian politician. He is a member of the SP.A, and became its party president on 15 October 2005...
, the outgoing chairman of the Flemish socialist party SP.A and a professor in constitutional law
Constitutional law
Constitutional law is the body of law which defines the relationship of different entities within a state, namely, the executive, the legislature and the judiciary....
, who accused the parties involved in the coalition talks of forcing the King, who is supposed to remain impartial, to play a political role.
That evening, the King received Jo Vandeurzen, the CD&V chairman, and Didier Reynders, the chairman of the MR. The next day the King received the chairpersons of the two other orange-blue parties, Bart Somers (Open Vld) and Joëlle Milquet (CDH), in order to attempt to defuse the tensions. The King did not receive the chairmen of the N-VA and the FDF
Democratic Front of Francophones
The Francophone Democratic Federalists , is a Francophone political party based in Brussels, Belgium founded on 11 May 1964. Until 1982, the FDF dominated Brussels' municipal politics. It is led by Deputy Olivier Maingain....
; however, Bart De Wever (N-VA) reportedly did receive an exploratory phone call from the Royal Palace. During the weekend, there also were informal consultations between the formateur and all other parties involved in the coalition talks.
Leterme resumes his mission and resigns
On Sunday August 19, the formateur Leterme was summoned by the King to discuss his consultations. Afterwards, the King asked him to resume his work as formateur, but asked him to make new political contacts before resuming the negotiations. After further negotiations produced no results, Leterme resigned as formateur on August 23.Consultations by the King, 23 – 29 August
Following Yves LetermeYves Leterme
Yves Camille Désiré Leterme is a Flemish Belgian politician, a leader of the Christian Democratic and Flemish party , and the 48th Prime Minister of Belgium.Leterme was the Prime Minister of Belgium from March 2008 to December 2008...
's resignation, King Albert asked Didier Reynders
Didier Reynders
Didier J.L. Reynders is a Belgian politician and a member of the Mouvement Réformateur . He is Belgian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance and Institutional Reforms in the Van Rompuy I Government, which took office on 30 December 2008.He was born in Liège as the youngest in a family of...
, the chairman of the Francophone liberal party MR
Reformist Movement
The Reformist Movement is a French-speaking liberal political party in Belgium. The party was in coalition as part of the Leterme II Government, and was also part of the governing coalition in the Walloon Region and Brussels-Capital Region until the 2004 regional elections...
and erstwhile informateur, to seek a way out of the stalemate. At first, the Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroep
Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroep
The Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroeporganisatie , or VRT, is a publicly-funded broadcaster of radio and television in Flanders ....
(VRT) reported that Philippe Maystadt
Philippe Maystadt
Philippe M.P.J. Maystadt is a Belgian politician who served as Minister for Economic Affairs, Minister of Finance, and Deputy Prime Minister. He is the current President of the European Investment Bank . He was appointed to this office on 1 January 2000.Philippe Maystadt was born in Verviers in...
or Melchior Wathelet
Melchior Wathelet
Melchior H.M.J.F.C. Wathelet is a Belgian politician and member of the Humanist Democratic Centre. He has degrees in law and in economics and is a Master of Laws . He's also a professor at the Catholic University of Louvain and the Université de Liège...
would probably take over, either as informateur or as royal mediator. The Flemish parties felt it was up to a member of CDH to take an initiative; however, the CDH wanted a Flemish politician to be involved in the mediation efforts as well. It was later reported that, according to observers, King Albert would probably ask Raymond Langendries
Raymond Langendries
Raymond A. Langendries is a Belgian politician and Member of the European Parliament for the French Community of Belgium with the Centre Démocrate Humaniste, part of the European People's Party and sits on the European Parliament's Committee on Employment and Social Affairs.He is a substitute for...
(CDH) and Herman De Croo
Herman De Croo
Herman Francies Joseph De Croo is a Belgian liberal politician. He is a member of the Open VLD. He is the father of current Open VLD chairman Alexander De Croo....
(Open Vld) to mediate.
On August 24, a survey conducted by VTM
VTM
The abbreviation VTM may refer to::* Vampire: The Masquerade, a popular role-playing game* Virginia Tech massacre* vtm, the main commercial television station in Flanders, Belgium...
showed that 45.8% of the 1300 Flemings polled wanted Flanders to be declared independent and that 54.2% opposed such an action. The same survey showed that 58% of the respondents thought that the state reform is worth a crisis. Also, 72% could not understand the French-speaking opposition, and 53% thought that Milquet was to blame for the crisis and 15% thought that Leterme was to blame.
On August 25, the King received Herman Van Rompuy
Herman Van Rompuy
Herman Achille Van Rompuy is the first long-term and full-time President of the European Council...
(CD&V), President of the Chamber of Representatives and Armand De Decker
Armand De Decker
Armand De Decker, born in Uccle, 8 October 1948, is a Belgian politician and member of the French-speaking liberal party Mouvement Réformateur .De Decker studied law at the Université Libre de Bruxelles and practised law.-Political career:...
(MR), President of the Senate, and on August 27 the Royal Palace announced that the King would receive several ministers of State
Minister of State
Minister of State is a title borne by politicians or officials in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a "minister of state" is a junior minister, who is assigned to assist a specific cabinet minister...
to discuss the political crisis. It was suggested by De Standaard
De Standaard
De Standaard is a Flemish daily newspaper published in Belgium by Corelio . Circulation was about 102.280 in 2007. It was traditionally a Christian-Democratic paper, associated with the Christian-Democratic and Flemish Party, and in opposition to the Socialist Flemish daily De Morgen...
that the King would not appoint the duo Langendries and De Croo because they were already named too much in the media which caused several politicians, such as Hendrik Bogaert
Hendrik Bogaert
Hendrik Bogaert is a Flemish politician and member of the Christian Democratic and Flemish party . Since 2003 he is member of the Belgian Chamber of Representatives.- References :*...
(CD&V) and Bart De Wever
Bart De Wever
Bart Albert Liliane De Wever is a Belgian politician and since 2004 has been the president of the New Flemish Alliance , a Flemish party that strives for an independent Flanders in a united Europe. He has also been a member of the Flemish parliament since 2004...
(N-VA), to object or criticize such a choice. The Open VLD also held a press conference in which Bart Somers
Bart Somers
Bartolomeus Jozef Lodewijk Rosalia "Bart" Somers is a Belgian, Flemish politician. He is currently the mayor of Mechelen...
called the remarks about De Croo "inconvenient and unseen". He also said that the problem of the Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde
Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde
Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde is a Belgian electoral and judicial arrondissement in the center of the country, encompassing:* the officially bilingual Brussels-Capital Region, which coincides...
(BHV) electoral district should be tackled before all other issues, something regarded by the VRT as a direct criticism of Leterme because he did not once mention this problem when he was formateur. Minister of Foreign Affairs Karel De Gucht
Karel De Gucht
Karel Lodewijk Georgette Emmerence De Gucht is a Belgian politician who has been the European Commissioner for Trade since 2010...
, who is a negotiator for Open VLD in the coalition talks, described the government formation as "surrealistic" and added: "Ceci n'est pas une formation".
Jean-Luc Dehaene
Jean-Luc Dehaene
-Early life and political career:He was born in Montpellier, France, when his parents were fleeing German troops. He got into politics through the Algemeen Christelijk Werknemersverbond , a trade union which was closely linked to the Christelijke Volkspartij .In 1981, he became Minister of Social...
, Wilfried Martens
Wilfried Martens
Wilfried Martens is a Belgian politician. He was born in Sleidinge . Martens was the 44th Prime Minister of Belgium from 3 April 1979 to 6 April 1981 and 17 December 1981 to 7 March 1992....
and Philippe Moureaux
Philippe Moureaux
Philippe Moureaux is a Belgian politician, senator, mayor of Sint-Jans-Molenbeek, and professor of economic history at the Université Libre de Bruxelles....
were the first ministers of State to be received by the King. A photographer took a picture of a document Dehaene had with him when he arrived at the palace. The document reportedly stated that the state reform should not be an issue during the formation whereas the issue of Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde
Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde
Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde is a Belgian electoral and judicial arrondissement in the center of the country, encompassing:* the officially bilingual Brussels-Capital Region, which coincides...
should be included in a coalition agreement, and that all elections
Elections in Belgium
Elections in Belgium gives information on election and election results in Belgium.Belgium elects its bicameral federal legislature, the Federal Parliament Elections in Belgium gives information on election and election results in Belgium.Belgium elects its bicameral federal legislature, the...
(federal, regional and European) should coincide in 2009. On Tuesday August 28, King Albert received Willy Claes
Willy Claes
Willem Werner Hubert "Willy" Claes was the eighth Secretary General of NATO and a Belgian politician. He was a member of the Flemish Socialist Party....
(SP.A), Gérard Deprez
Gérard Deprez
Gérard M.J. Deprez is a Belgian politician andex-Member of the European Parliament for the French Community of Belgiumwith the MR/MCC/PRL,part of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe and sits on...
(MR
Reformist Movement
The Reformist Movement is a French-speaking liberal political party in Belgium. The party was in coalition as part of the Leterme II Government, and was also part of the governing coalition in the Walloon Region and Brussels-Capital Region until the 2004 regional elections...
), Jos Geysels (Groen!
Green!
Groen! is a Belgian green political party. Green! is the smallest Flemish party with a representation in the federal, regional or European parliament.-Before 1979:...
), Philippe Busquin
Philippe Busquin
Philippe Busquin is a Belgian politician. He was Member of the European Parliament from 2004 to 2009 for the French Community of Belgium with the Parti Socialiste, part of the Socialist Group and sat on the European Parliament's Committee on Industry, Research and Energy. Busquin was the chairman...
(PS
Socialist Party (francophone Belgium)
The Socialist Party is a Francophone social-democratic political party in Belgium. As of the 2010 elections, it is the second largest party in the Belgian Chamber of Representatives and the largest Francophone party...
), Charles-Ferdinand Nothomb (Humanist Democratic Centre
Humanist Democratic Centre
The Humanist Democratic Centre is a Francophone Christian democratic political party in Belgium. The cdH currently participates in the Government of the Brussels-Capital Region, the Government of the French Community and the Walloon Government.- History :...
) and José Daras (Ecolo
Ecolo
Ecolo is a French-speaking Belgian green political party in Wallonia, Brussels and the German-speaking Community of Belgium...
). The following day, the King received three more ministers of State: Raymond Langendries
Raymond Langendries
Raymond A. Langendries is a Belgian politician and Member of the European Parliament for the French Community of Belgium with the Centre Démocrate Humaniste, part of the European People's Party and sits on the European Parliament's Committee on Employment and Social Affairs.He is a substitute for...
(Humanist Democratic Centre
Humanist Democratic Centre
The Humanist Democratic Centre is a Francophone Christian democratic political party in Belgium. The cdH currently participates in the Government of the Brussels-Capital Region, the Government of the French Community and the Walloon Government.- History :...
), Herman De Croo
Herman De Croo
Herman Francies Joseph De Croo is a Belgian liberal politician. He is a member of the Open VLD. He is the father of current Open VLD chairman Alexander De Croo....
(Open VLD) and Louis Michel
Louis Michel
Louis H. O. Ch. Michel is a Belgian politician. He served in the government of Belgium as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1999 to 2004 and was European Commissioner for Development and Humanitarian Aid from 2004 to 2009. Since 2009, he has been a Member of the European Parliament...
(MR
Reformist Movement
The Reformist Movement is a French-speaking liberal political party in Belgium. The party was in coalition as part of the Leterme II Government, and was also part of the governing coalition in the Walloon Region and Brussels-Capital Region until the 2004 regional elections...
).
Van Rompuy begins his mission
Following consultations with a number of ministers of State, King Albert received Herman Van RompuyHerman Van Rompuy
Herman Achille Van Rompuy is the first long-term and full-time President of the European Council...
(CD&V
Christian Democratic and Flemish
The Christian Democratic and Flemish is a political party of Belgium, formerly called Christian People's Party...
), the outgoing President of the Chamber of Representatives, and charged him with an exploratory mission in order to find a solution to the political crisis. Van Rompuy was considered by Flemish and French-speaking parties and newspapers as a good choice. He met on August 30 with the presidents of several parties of the orange-blue coalition, in particular Jo Vandeurzen (CD&V), Bart De Wever (N-VA), Bart Somers (Open VLD) and Jöelle Milquet (CDH). On August 31, he met with presidents Didier Reynders (MR), Olivier Maingain, (FDF) and Jean-Michel Javaux (Ecolo). The content of the discussions is unknown as Van Rompuy wanted to communicate and negotiate discreetly. De Standaard noted that Van Rompuy did not talk with a member of the PS, which could mean he wanted to reach the required two-thirds majority for constitutional reform with the ecologists (Ecolo on the French-speaking side) and rather that the PS.
Also on August 30, the Walloon government held its first meeting since the summer holidays. Rudy Demotte
Rudy Demotte
Rudy W.G. Demotte is a Belgian socialist politician and present Minister-President of Wallonia since 19 July 2007, replacing Elio Di Rupo, one month after an historical defeat of the socialists in the federal election...
(PS), the minister-president of the Walloon government criticized the long duration of the government formation and was skeptical about whether Van Rompuy would be able to solve the crisis. He also said that he was waiting for formation proposals. On August 31, Milquet said institutional reform was less important than other topics and all French-speaking parties should formulate a common strategy. She also expressed her wish to replace the current "confrontational federalism" with a modern "cooperative federalism". Gérard Deprez
Gérard Deprez
Gérard M.J. Deprez is a Belgian politician andex-Member of the European Parliament for the French Community of Belgiumwith the MR/MCC/PRL,part of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe and sits on...
(MCC, a part of the MR just like the FDF) criticized Maingain's (FDF) demand for the territorial expansion of the region of Brussels to several Flemish towns in return for the split of the BHV electoral district. Deprez said in La Libre Belgique that "Maingain acts like the Inquisition and excommunicates everyone that does not share his dogmas".
In an international press meeting, the Flemish nationalist party Vlaams Belang
Vlaams Belang
Vlaams Belang is a Belgian far-right political party in the Flemish Region and Brussels that advocates the independence of Flanders and strict limits on immigration, whereby immigrants would be obliged to adopt Flemish culture and language...
said that the formation crisis was an example of Belgium's failure to function as a state and that the time had come to declare Flemish independence. On September 1, the Flemish newspaper De Standaard devoted an issue to the question of whether a Flemish secession was realistic and viable. On September 2, during De Gordel
De Gordel
De Gordel is a partly political, partly family cycling and walking event around Brussels, Belgium. The event is organised by Bloso, each year since 1971 on the first Sunday of September. It is meant as a symbolic affirmation that the municipalities involved are part of Flanders...
, an annual Flemish cycling event in the periphery of Brussels with a strong political undertone, Eric Van Rompuy
Eric Van Rompuy
Eric Karel Paul Van Rompuy is a Flemish politician.-Biography:He is the son of the later Prof. em. dr. Vic Van Rompuy and brother of Herman Van Rompuy and Christine Van Rompuy....
(member of the CD&V and the brother of explorateur Herman) and Bart De Wever (N-VA) emphasized that this should be the last De Gordel in which the problems surrounding the BHV were not solved. Flemish minister Geert Bourgeois (N-VA) also stated that the Flemish majority in the newly elected parliament should urgently solve the problem unilaterally - i.e. without the consent of the French speaking parties and thus without any offers. Other politicians, such as Flemish minister-president Kris Peeters
Kris Peeters
Kris Peeters is a Flemish politician and member of the Christian Democratic and Flemish party who is currently Minister-President of Flanders, the northern region of Belgium....
(CD&V) and federal minister of Internal Affairs Patrick Dewael
Patrick Dewael
Patrick Yvonne Hugo Dewael, in Lier, Belgium is a liberal Belgian politician. He is a member of the Flemish Liberals and Democrats, or Vlaamse Liberalen en Democraten . He is the nephew of the late liberal minister Herman Vanderpoorten and the cousin of Marleen Vanderpoorten, who also served as...
(Open VLD) participated in the event, but did not comment on BHV. Prominent absentees were Yves Leterme and Guy Verhofstadt.
Non-participation of Ecolo
During this period, speculation about the participation of the French-speaking ecologist party Ecolo in the orange-blue coalition increased. Van Rompuy tried to obtain the support of Ecolo for the coalition to address left-winged CDH's desire to have a left-wing partner in the centre-right coalition.On September 3, Ecolo said that three conditions must be met for it to participate in a coalition. First, the party refused to join any coalition involving N-VA. A coalition without the N-VA would "respect the different communities" of Belgium. Second, Groen!, the Flemish ecologists would have to be part of the coalition as well. Third, formation would have to be renegotiated to give the climate change a central place in the coalition programme.
CD&V/N-VA said Ecolo's demands could not "be taken seriously" because the CD&V without the N-VA was unthinkable. They also said the presence of N-VA was not a problem, but that the problem is the unreasonableness of the French-speaking parties to negotiate around the Flemish demands. Groen! said it was unwilling to participate in a coalition in which it is not necessary to obtain a majority in parliament. The need to undertake the negotiations again also meant the agreement between the partners about the prolonged existence of several nuclear power plants had to be reconsidered.
Herman Van Rompuy provided the King a first interim report on September 3. Although his effort to include Ecolo in the coalition failed, Van Rompuy continued his mission despite a general decline in optimism about his likelihood of success of his mission steeply declined. He formulated several proposals that he suggested to the orange-blue parties. On 10 September, Van Rompuy provided the King with a second "interim" report - something that indicated his work would be prolonged.
Plenary session of the Flemish parliament
Filip DewinterFilip Dewinter
Philip Michel Frans "Filip" Dewinter is a Flemish politician in Belgium. He is one of the leading members of Vlaams Belang, a right-wing Flemish nationalist and secessionist political party...
of the Vlaams Belang
Vlaams Belang
Vlaams Belang is a Belgian far-right political party in the Flemish Region and Brussels that advocates the independence of Flanders and strict limits on immigration, whereby immigrants would be obliged to adopt Flemish culture and language...
proposed to have an earlier plenary session in the Flemish parliament to discuss the communtarian crisis, a request that was granted. On September 10, under the eyes of the international media, he proposed in the plenary session to prepare a plan for an independent Flanders and to hold a referendum on independence. He said that the Flemish resolutions agreed upon in the Flemish parliament in 1999 (that supported a far-reaching devolution of powers) were a breaking point. He also called Belgium "a country that is terminally ill" and that it was time to say "bye bye Belgium".
Other parties vehemently opposed the course of action, proposed by Dewinter. For instance, Ludwig Caluwé (CD&V) said that the Flemish Interest did not vote for the resolutions in 1999. He added that more power to the regions does not imply the end of inter-regional solidarity. Patrcia Ceysens (Open VLD) said that "the country is not going to split, the parliament is not going to declare independence."
Leterme's controversial remark
In Karrewiet, a Flemish news program for children, Leterme was interviewed. He said "We could make sure that they [French-speaking Belgium] could build schools more cheaply. That would be beneficial for students from Wallonia and Brussels. Maybe if we could agree about that, French-speakers would be willing to negotiate about our demands."French-speaking politicians and the French-speaking media were enraged about Leterme's remark. Marie Arena
Marie Arena
Marie Arena is a French-speaking Belgian politician, member of the Francophone Socialist Party . She was the Minister-President of the French Community of Belgium from July 2004 until March 2008. She then became Minister for Social Integration, Pensions and Large Cities in the federal government,...
(PS) and Joëlle Milquet
Joëlle Milquet
Joëlle F.G.M. Milquet is a Belgian politician from the Humanist Democratic Centre .-Education:...
(CDH) interpreted Leterme's remark as making the Flemish youth believe Walloon parties are only interested in money and could be bribed. They also said that the lower VAT
Vat
Vat or VAT may refer to:* A type of container such as a barrel, storage tank, or tub, often constructed of welded sheet stainless steel, and used for holding, storing, and processing liquids such as milk, wine, and beer...
for building schools was already agreed upon in a six-year old accord which was still not executed. Milquet said that Leterme should refrain from giving interviews.
Wilfried Martens
Wilfried Martens
Wilfried Martens is a Belgian politician. He was born in Sleidinge . Martens was the 44th Prime Minister of Belgium from 3 April 1979 to 6 April 1981 and 17 December 1981 to 7 March 1992....
(CD&V) criticized the French-speaking side of the country for misinterpreting a "sign of goodwill" made by Leterme. Karel de Gucht
Karel De Gucht
Karel Lodewijk Georgette Emmerence De Gucht is a Belgian politician who has been the European Commissioner for Trade since 2010...
(Open VLD) said that they do not have a veto right about which Fleming can become prime minister. He also added that they overreacted. "Who takes away his position as prime minister, turns him into a political martyr. I do not feel like competing against a political martyr during the next election. Why should he not be allowed to speak? The campaign waged against him...is unacceptable."
Criticism on the duration of negotiations
Guy QuadenGuy Quaden
Guy, Baron Quaden is a Belgian economist and since 1 March 1999 Governor of the National Bank of Belgium. He is a member of the Council of governing board and of the general Council of the European Central Bank...
, president of the National Bank of Belgium
National Bank of Belgium
The National Bank of Belgium has been the central bank of Belgium since 1850...
, warned on September 13 that the long duration of negotiations were not without a price as much-needed measures in the domains of budget, competition and employment are still not taken. Didier Reynders said that Quaden should occupy himself with "interest rates, not politics". CDH agreed with Quaden. CD&V and Open-VLD also agreed, but said that a good agreement was better than a quick but bad agreement.
Elio Di Rupo
Elio Di Rupo
Elio Di Rupo is a Belgian social-democratic politician and the Party Leader of the Socialist Party .-Biography:...
, the president of the PS, sharply criticized the duration of the negotiations. "Three months on from the election, they're not even sitting around the negotiation table. This has never happened before". He continued, "If we would have participated in the talks, negotiations would never have been derailed". Di Rupo also called the talks a "guerilla war" rather than negotiations.
Belgian Minister of State
Minister of State
Minister of State is a title borne by politicians or officials in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a "minister of state" is a junior minister, who is assigned to assist a specific cabinet minister...
Louis Tobback
Louis Tobback
Louis Marie Joseph Tobback is a Belgian politician. Tobback is a Flemish social democrat and member of the political party SP.A. He is currently the mayor of Leuven. He graduated in Romance philology at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel....
and Trends journalist Geert Noels blamed the Euro
Euro
The euro is the official currency of the eurozone: 17 of the 27 member states of the European Union. It is also the currency used by the Institutions of the European Union. The eurozone consists of Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg,...
for allowing the formation talks to last this long. Since the Belgian government is no longer in charge of its own monetary policy
Monetary policy
Monetary policy is the process by which the monetary authority of a country controls the supply of money, often targeting a rate of interest for the purpose of promoting economic growth and stability. The official goals usually include relatively stable prices and low unemployment...
, the value of the currency will not be affected by this political crisis, so there is no monetary incentive to force the formation partners to find a quick solution.
No participation of the PS
On August 31, the magazine Knack reported that talks were taking place to include the francophone Socialist PartySocialist Party (francophone Belgium)
The Socialist Party is a Francophone social-democratic political party in Belgium. As of the 2010 elections, it is the second largest party in the Belgian Chamber of Representatives and the largest Francophone party...
(PS) in a tripartite coalition. This was denied by Di Rupo, whilst Didier Reynders absolutely ruled out the MR joining a coalition with the PS. Rumours continued until September 7 when Van Rompuy denied any negotiations on extending the Orange-Blue coalition to include the PS.
On September 14, Jean-Jacques Viseur (CDH), mayor of Charleroi, said that it was wrong to keep the socialists out of the government. On September 16, Open VLD senator Patrik Vankrunkelsven
Patrik Vankrunkelsven
Patrick Jules Maria Vankrunkelsven , physician, dr. sc. med., Professor in medicine and Flemish politician. He obtained an MD and PhD from the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven .-Political career:...
agreed and openly questioned his party's opposition to the participation of the socialists in government. He said that as long as the PS is an opposition party, the MR will not make any concessions on state reform.
On September 17, it was revealed that Van Rompuy had used Jean-Luc Dehaene
Jean-Luc Dehaene
-Early life and political career:He was born in Montpellier, France, when his parents were fleeing German troops. He got into politics through the Algemeen Christelijk Werknemersverbond , a trade union which was closely linked to the Christelijke Volkspartij .In 1981, he became Minister of Social...
to contact the PS secretly a week earlier. Dehaene met Elio Di Rupo and enquired as to whether the PS would support some parts of a state reform from opposition, as the SP.a has said it will. Di Rupo declined to support reforms as long as the PS is not a member of the coalition.
Larger role for Van Rompuy
Van Rompuy's discretion was appreciated in French-speaking Belgium. MR and CDH proposed that Van Rompuy would include issues such as the federal budget, justice and social-economic matters in his exploratory mandate. Until then, Van Rompuy only tried to determine communatarian issues ranging from the BHV to the regionalisationRegionalisation
Regionalization is the tendency to form regions, or the process of doing so.Regionalization can be observed in various disciplines:*In geography, it has two ways: the process of delineating the Earth, its small areas or other units into regions and a state of such a delineation.*In globalization...
of power. Van Rompuy's spokesman said that such a widening of his mandate was not being considered.
Open VLD and CD&V supported the French-speaking proposal. CD&V added that a widening of his role can only happen if Van Rompuy remains an explorer, does not become a formateur and does not negotiate. Jo Vandeurzen (CD&V) also emphasized that Leterme remains the prime minister designate. VLD responded that they did not have any intention to undermine the position of Leterme.
Second formation round, 29 September – 1 December
On September 29, Herman Van Rompuy presented his final report to the King. Afterwards, the Royal Palace announced that King Albert IIAlbert II of Belgium
Albert II is the current reigning King of the Belgians, a constitutional monarch. He is a member of the royal house "of Belgium"; formerly this house was named Saxe-Coburg-Gotha...
relieved him of his exploratory mission. Later that day, King Albert II again appointed Yves Leterme
Yves Leterme
Yves Camille Désiré Leterme is a Flemish Belgian politician, a leader of the Christian Democratic and Flemish party , and the 48th Prime Minister of Belgium.Leterme was the Prime Minister of Belgium from March 2008 to December 2008...
as formateur
Formateur
A formateur is a politician who is appointed by the head of state to lead the formation of a coalition government, after either a general election or the collapse of a previous government. The role of the formateur is especially important in the politics of Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg,...
. On Friday, 5 October, Leterme provided the King his first interim report, after which negotiations with all orange-blue parties began.
Voting about Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde
Talks for a new government were interrupted on November 7, with agreements about everything not related to strengthening FlandersFlanders
Flanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...
, Wallonia and Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
; or to monetary affairs. Chairman Pieter De Crem
Pieter De Crem
Pieter Frans Norbert Jozef Raymond De Crem is a Belgian, Flemish politician and member of Christian Democratic and Flemish . He is the current Minister of Defense in the Belgian federal government. He has been a Member of the Belgian Chamber of Representatives since 1995. He headed the CD&V...
(Christian Democratic and Flemish
Christian Democratic and Flemish
The Christian Democratic and Flemish is a political party of Belgium, formerly called Christian People's Party...
) of the Belgian Chamber Committee on the Interior
Belgian Chamber Committee on the Interior
The Committee on the Interior, General Affairs and the Civil Service , more commonly referred to as the Committee on the Interior, is a standing committee of the Belgian Chamber of Representatives. It is responsible for all matters related to the internal affairs of Belgium...
had decided to go ahead with a vote on the split of electoral district Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde
Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde
Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde is a Belgian electoral and judicial arrondissement in the center of the country, encompassing:* the officially bilingual Brussels-Capital Region, which coincides...
. The six Francophone committee members walked out in protest. The 11 Dutch-speaking members continued the meeting, and voted in favour of the split, with only Tinne Van der Straeten
Tinne Van der Straeten
Tinne Van der Straeten is a Flemish politician. She is member of the party Groen!. From 2007 till 2010, she was a representative in the Belgian Chamber for the electoral arrondissement Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde...
(Groen!) abstaining.
The Francophone parties subsequently invoked a procedure known as the conflict of interest , a procedure whereby a regional parliament can indicate that it feels that the interests of the region are hurt by the decision of another political body in Belgium, in this case the Belgian Chamber Committee on the Interior. The Parliament of the French Community of Belgium
French Community of Belgium
The French Community of Belgium is one of the three official communities in Belgium along with the Flemish Community and the German speaking Community. Although its name could suggest that it is a community of French citizens in Belgium, it is not...
approved the procedure on November 9, with three members of the National Front
National Front (Belgium)
The National Front is a francophone Belgian far-right political party. The party's ideology advocates a strong unitary Belgian nationalism and is strongly against immigration.The party's acting leader is Patrick Cocriamont....
abstaining. This suspends a decision about Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde for a period of 60 days.
The King intervenes
On November 9, King Albert II intervened. He took state reform off the agenda for the negotiations, and instructed the chairmen of the Chamber of Representatives and the SenateBelgian Senate
The Belgian Senate is one of the two chambers of the bicameral Federal Parliament of Belgium, the other being the Chamber of Representatives. It is considered to be the "upper house" of the Federal Parliament.-History and future:...
to "start a dialogue" on the matter. In a joint statement, the parties CD&V and N-VA rejected the decision, and stated they would only join a government if there were "guarantees for big state reform."
On November 12, the King met with the chairmen of the socialist parties SP.A and PS, and the green parties Groen! and Ecolo, who would be part of the opposition if the orange-blue government were to be formed. The purpose of the meeting was to see whether the parties were willing to take part in a Committee of Wise Men that would examine the possibilities for state reform. SP.A chairwoman Caroline Gennez
Caroline Gennez
Caroline Gennez is a Belgian socialist politician and a former chairwoman of the Socialist Party – Different in Flanders.-Biography:...
declined the offer, saying it was not the job of her party to make an orange-blue government possible. She called the Council of Wise Men "not a way towards a solution to state reform, but a getaway route to nowhere." Mieke Vogels
Mieke Vogels
Maria Bertha Charlotte Vogels is a Flemish politician in the environmentalist party Groen!.-Biography:In 1978, Vogels got a Master's degree in Political and Social Sciences at the University Institution Antwerp .-Political career:* 1985 - 1995 : Member of the Belgian Chamber of Representatives*...
, chairwoman of Groen!, stated her party would not give the new government a "blank check" for state reform. Chairman Elio di Rupo
Elio Di Rupo
Elio Di Rupo is a Belgian social-democratic politician and the Party Leader of the Socialist Party .-Biography:...
of the PS said he wanted to see the "menu" of the Committee of Wise Men first; "without a serious menu, [the Committee of Wise Men] risks becoming a talking shop."
The next day, the King met with the chairmen of CD&V, CDH, Open VLD and MR, and with Chamber of Representatives chairman Herman Van Rompuy
Herman Van Rompuy
Herman Achille Van Rompuy is the first long-term and full-time President of the European Council...
(CD&V) and Senate
Belgian Senate
The Belgian Senate is one of the two chambers of the bicameral Federal Parliament of Belgium, the other being the Chamber of Representatives. It is considered to be the "upper house" of the Federal Parliament.-History and future:...
chairman Armand De Decker
Armand De Decker
Armand De Decker, born in Uccle, 8 October 1948, is a Belgian politician and member of the French-speaking liberal party Mouvement Réformateur .De Decker studied law at the Université Libre de Bruxelles and practised law.-Political career:...
(MR), to discuss ways to start dialogue on state reform.
CD&V's partner party in the negotiations, N-VA, was not invited, neither was FDF
Democratic Front of Francophones
The Francophone Democratic Federalists , is a Francophone political party based in Brussels, Belgium founded on 11 May 1964. Until 1982, the FDF dominated Brussels' municipal politics. It is led by Deputy Olivier Maingain....
, which is affiliated with MR. The chairmen of right-wing parties Flemish Interest, List Dedecker and FN - who would be in opposition if the orange-blue government was to be formed - were not invited either.
One of the instructions the King had given to De Decker and Van Rompuy, was to find a way to start a dialogue on state reform. In an interview with RTBF
RTBF
Radio Télévision Belge Francophone is the public broadcasting organization of the French Community of Belgium, the southern, French-speaking part of Belgium...
on November 14, Armand De Decker said he and Karel Van Rompuy wanted to establish a National Committee of Dialogue . The committee would consist of prominent politicians of the Christian-democratic, liberal, socialist and green parties, who together have a two-thirds majority in both the Chamber of Representatives and the Senate. Van Rompuy stated that nothing had been agreed upon, and that De Decker had spoken in his own name.
Negotiations at a standstill
While the King was trying to find a new way to hold negotiations between the parties involved, the negotiations themselves came to a standstill. The parties have not spoken with each other since November 8, and the Francophone parties have stated that they would only rejoin the negotiating table if the Flemish parties apologize for the Chamber Committee on the Interior vote on Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde.Several politicians had suggested a tripartite government of liberal, Christian-democratic and socialist parties. The newspapers Gazet van Antwerpen
Gazet van Antwerpen
The Gazet van Antwerpen is a Belgian newspaper in Antwerp and Flanders, published by Concentra.-History:...
and Het Belang van Limburg
Het Belang van Limburg
Het Belang van Limburg is a Belgian regional newspaper. The newspaper was founded in 1933 as a merger of a few weekly magazines.- External links :* *...
reported on November 13 that the CD&V was leaning towards that option as well. Party spokesman Peter Poulussen denounced the reports as "pure speculation," and Open VLD and MR rejected the idea of a tripartite government.
Bruno De Wever, professor at the Ghent University
Ghent University
Ghent University is a Dutch-speaking public university located in Ghent, Belgium. It is one of the larger Flemish universities, consisting of 32,000 students and 7,100 staff members. The current rector is Paul Van Cauwenberge.It was established in 1817 by King William I of the Netherlands...
and brother of N-VA
New-Flemish Alliance
' is a Flemish right-wing political party, founded in the autumn of 2001. It is a conservative and liberal movement that promotes civic nationalism...
chairman Bart De Wever
Bart De Wever
Bart Albert Liliane De Wever is a Belgian politician and since 2004 has been the president of the New Flemish Alliance , a Flemish party that strives for an independent Flanders in a united Europe. He has also been a member of the Flemish parliament since 2004...
on 17 November stated on Kanaal Z, a Flemish
Flanders
Flanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...
business television channel
Television channel
A television channel is a physical or virtual channel over which a television station or television network is distributed. For example, in North America, "channel 2" refers to the broadcast or cable band of 54 to 60 MHz, with carrier frequencies of 55.25 MHz for NTSC analog video and...
, that "a periphery around Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
where 80% speaks French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, is not Flemish." He said that a compromise should be worked with an increase in social and economic competences for Flanders in exchange for the expansion of the bilingual Brussels-Capital Region. Bruno De Wever also said that it is hard to continue to call a municipality where a large majority of the population speaks French a Flemish municipality.
Mayors of Kraainem, Linkebeek and Wezembeek-Oppem
FlemishFlanders
Flanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...
Interior Minister Marino Keulen
Marino Keulen
Marino Ghislainus Keulen is a Flemish politician and member of the Open Flemish Liberals and Democrats party. He is a representative in the Flemish Parliament, and served in the Flemish Government of 2004-2009 as Minister of Home Affairs, Urban Policy, Housing and Civic Integration...
(Open VLD) announced on November 14 that he had decided not to appoint the French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
-speaking mayors of Kraainem
Kraainem
Kraainem is a municipality in the province of Flemish Brabant, in Flanders, one of the three regions of Belgium. The municipality only comprises the town of Kraainem proper. On January 1, 2006 Kraainem had a total population of 13,150...
, Linkebeek
Linkebeek
Linkebeek is a Belgian municipality in Flanders, part of the province of Flemish Brabant, in the bilingual electoral and judicial district of Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde, and in the administrative district of Halle-Vilvoorde. The municipality only comprises the town of Linkebeek proper. As of January...
and Wezembeek-Oppem
Wezembeek-Oppem
Wezembeek-Oppem is a municipality in the Belgian province of Flemish Brabant, ten kilometres east of the centre of Brussels. The municipality only comprises the town of Wezembeek-Oppem proper. On January 1, 2006 Wezembeek-Oppem had a total population of 13,504...
, three municipalities with linguistic facilities
Municipalities with linguistic facilities
The municipalities with language facilities, occasionally called municipalities with linguistic facilities or shortly municipalities with facilities , are municipalities in Belgium with legal provisions to protect rights of their linguistic minorities...
in the Flemish Periphery of Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
, because they had sent letters of convocation (letters calling citizens to vote and informing them where their polling station is) in French for the 2006 municipal elections
Belgian municipal elections, 2006
The Belgian provincial and municipal elections, 2006 took place on Sunday 8 October 2006. The electors have elected the municipal counsellors of 589 cities and towns as well as the ten provincial councils...
and the 2007 federal election
Belgian general election, 2007
The 2007 Belgian general election took place on Sunday 10 June 2007. Voters went to the polls in order to elect new members for the Chamber of Representatives and Senate.Eligible voters were Belgian citizens 18 years and older...
. This was a violation of rules established by the Flemish Government
Flemish government
The Flemish Government is the executive branch of the Flemish Community and the Flemish Region. It consists of up to a maximum of eleven ministers, chosen by the Flemish Parliament...
. The three mayors are all members of the FDF
Democratic Front of Francophones
The Francophone Democratic Federalists , is a Francophone political party based in Brussels, Belgium founded on 11 May 1964. Until 1982, the FDF dominated Brussels' municipal politics. It is led by Deputy Olivier Maingain....
. Marino Keulen will ask the municipal councils of these municipalities to nominate a new mayor for appointment.
The three mayors also violated language legislation
Language legislation in Belgium
-1830: freedom of languages and linguistic coercion:One of the causes of the Belgian Revolution of the 1830s was the growing ascendancy of the Dutch language in the administration of the Southern provinces of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands...
by allowing French to be spoken during the meetings of the municipal councils of Kraainem, Linkebeek and Wezembeek-Oppem on Monday 22 October 2007, which Minister Marino Keulen described as a provocation.
Myriam Delacroix-Rolin (CDH
Humanist Democratic Centre
The Humanist Democratic Centre is a Francophone Christian democratic political party in Belgium. The cdH currently participates in the Government of the Brussels-Capital Region, the Government of the French Community and the Walloon Government.- History :...
), the Mayor of Sint-Genesius-Rode
Sint-Genesius-Rode
Sint-Genesius-Rode is a municipality located in Flanders, one of three regions of Belgium, in the province of Flemish Brabant. The municipality comprises the town of Sint-Genesius-Rode only. On January 1, 2008, the town had a total population of 18,021...
, another municipality with linguistic facilities, will be appointed; her municipality had only sent letters of convocation in French for the 2006 municipal elections.
The Francophone political parties put forth a united declaration in the Walloon parliament on November 16, calling the act by Flemish minister Keulen "a rejection of democracy." The appointment of the mayors should be seen in the broader perspective of the Brussels' periphery, the declaration stated. Damien Thiery, the Mayor of Linkebeek, announced the following day that he will again be presented for appointment as Mayor.
Resignation of Leterme
A confused week of negotiations started on 26 November 2007 with an agreement proposed by Yves Leterme and immediately accepted by CDH, MR, FDF and OpenVLD. Ironically, his own close partner N-VA did not accept the agreement, requesting more concessions for government reforms in the agreement instead; this led to a week of back and forth statements and interviews in the media.On 30 November 2007, Leterme made a final proposal with three questions; he requested positive responses to all questions by all parties in order to continue negotiations. The questions were:
- Are all topics admissible to be discussed in the special commission for state reform?
- Will the regions be given more leeway in regulating business tax rates?
- Can law proposals for state reform be adopted by any constitutional two-thirds majority, without extra conditions, as well?
The French-speaking party CDH gave no response to all three questions, and FDF did not accept the transfer of business tax regulations to the regions. Faced with this defeat, on 1 December 2007 Leterme gave his resignation as formateur to the King, which the King accepted.
Consultations by the King, 1 – 3 December
Guy VerhofstadtGuy Verhofstadt
Guy Verhofstadt is a Belgian politician who was the 47th Prime Minister of Belgium from 1999 to 2008. He is currently a Member of the European Parliament and leader of the Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe.- Early career :...
, who remains the head of government, was received by the King on 1 December. He was one of many politicians who could be asked by the King to try to seek a new consensus between Dutch and French-speaking parties. After visiting the royal palace twice on 3 December, prime minister Verhofstadt was nominated informateur by the King, although with a smaller role than an informateur usually plays. Verhofstadt stated he was hesitant at first to accept the job.
Second information round, 4 – 17 December
Verhofstadt started his information round on December 4, talking to the chairmen of the Belgian SenateBelgian Senate
The Belgian Senate is one of the two chambers of the bicameral Federal Parliament of Belgium, the other being the Chamber of Representatives. It is considered to be the "upper house" of the Federal Parliament.-History and future:...
and
Chamber of Representatives, Herman Van Rompuy and Armand De Decker respectively. The chairman have already been given the task by the Belgian King to organize a convention on constitutional reform, with members from the Belgian political class. Verhofstadt also met with the leaders of the largest political parties, followed by the smaller political parties on December 5. The main political parties have not ruled out a tripartite coalition, although Verhofstadt's own party, Open VLD, has come out against such arrangement. List Dedecker has declared it will not support Verhofstadt's endeavours, and wants to see new elections instead. Vlaams Belang
Vlaams Belang
Vlaams Belang is a Belgian far-right political party in the Flemish Region and Brussels that advocates the independence of Flanders and strict limits on immigration, whereby immigrants would be obliged to adopt Flemish culture and language...
and the Front National
National Front (Belgium)
The National Front is a francophone Belgian far-right political party. The party's ideology advocates a strong unitary Belgian nationalism and is strongly against immigration.The party's acting leader is Patrick Cocriamont....
were not invited by Verhofstadt.
There were several difficulties associated with forming a temporary government. On the French-speaking side, the MR opposed a government that included all French-speaking parties. On the Flemish side, the VLD opposed the participation of the SP.a, the Flemish socialist party.
Forming interim government, 17 December – 23 December
On 17 December, Guy VerhofstadtGuy Verhofstadt
Guy Verhofstadt is a Belgian politician who was the 47th Prime Minister of Belgium from 1999 to 2008. He is currently a Member of the European Parliament and leader of the Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe.- Early career :...
was asked by the King to start the formation of an "interim government" that would last until 23 March 2008.
On the morning of 18 December, Verhofstadt met with CDH head Joëlle Milquet
Joëlle Milquet
Joëlle F.G.M. Milquet is a Belgian politician from the Humanist Democratic Centre .-Education:...
and offered the party a part in an interim Government through a person outside the party, a move that confirmed the refusal by MR
Reformist Movement
The Reformist Movement is a French-speaking liberal political party in Belgium. The party was in coalition as part of the Leterme II Government, and was also part of the governing coalition in the Walloon Region and Brussels-Capital Region until the 2004 regional elections...
to a full participation of cdH in the interim Government. In reaction, CDH called a party meeting, soon followed by a press conference where cdH announced its withdrawal from formation talks. The move was followed in the afternoon by a call for francophone unity by PS
Socialist Party (francophone Belgium)
The Socialist Party is a Francophone social-democratic political party in Belgium. As of the 2010 elections, it is the second largest party in the Belgian Chamber of Representatives and the largest Francophone party...
head Elio di Rupo
Elio Di Rupo
Elio Di Rupo is a Belgian social-democratic politician and the Party Leader of the Socialist Party .-Biography:...
that announced it will not take part in a Government without CDH. Later in the afternoon, CD&V head Jo Vandeurzen
Jo Vandeurzen
Johan Maria Gerardus "Jo" Vandeurzen is a Belgian politician, member of Christen-Democratisch en Vlaams , a centrist Flemish Christian Democratic party. He was the Belgian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Justice and Institutional Reforms in the Leterme I Government , which took office on 20...
and Yves Leterme
Yves Leterme
Yves Camille Désiré Leterme is a Flemish Belgian politician, a leader of the Christian Democratic and Flemish party , and the 48th Prime Minister of Belgium.Leterme was the Prime Minister of Belgium from March 2008 to December 2008...
requested a meeting with Verhofstadt where they call for an inclusion of CDH in the coalition. MR thus remained the only party opposing a deal that would include CDH, Verhofstadt decided to meet with Milquet again in the evening and bring back his morning proposal of a participation of CDH in the Government through an external actor, but added that this Minister would have the rank though not the title of Deputy Prime Minister. Milquet and her party met and agreed on this proposal.
In the early hours of 19 December, Belga News Agency
Belga (news agency)
Belga is a Belgian news agency. Belga was founded in 1920 as "Agence télégraphique belge de presse" by Pierre-Marie Olivier and Maurice Travailleur. Seat : 8B Frédéric Pelletier Street, 1030 Schaerbeek - External link :*...
announced a deal had been struck by all parties and an interim Government was to be formed by 21 December and approved by Parliament by 23 December. Later in the day, it was confirmed Guy Verhofstadt would address the Parliament on 21 December with a General Policy Declaration. It was also announced the legal 48-hour delay following the declaration would lead the Parliament to vote its confidence to the interim Government on 23 December. The interim Government officially came into office when it was acknowledged by the lower house of Parliament with 97 votes in favour, 46 against on Sunday 23 December 2007.
Memorandums and agreements
- The Power Of People - 1, the first version of Yves LetermeYves LetermeYves Camille Désiré Leterme is a Flemish Belgian politician, a leader of the Christian Democratic and Flemish party , and the 48th Prime Minister of Belgium.Leterme was the Prime Minister of Belgium from March 2008 to December 2008...
's formation memorandum in DutchDutch languageDutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
, as published on Vrtnieuws.net. - The Power of People - 1, the first version of Yves LetermeYves LetermeYves Camille Désiré Leterme is a Flemish Belgian politician, a leader of the Christian Democratic and Flemish party , and the 48th Prime Minister of Belgium.Leterme was the Prime Minister of Belgium from March 2008 to December 2008...
's formation memorandum in FrenchFrench languageFrench is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, as published on LaLibre.be. - The Power Of People - 2, the second version of Yves LetermeYves LetermeYves Camille Désiré Leterme is a Flemish Belgian politician, a leader of the Christian Democratic and Flemish party , and the 48th Prime Minister of Belgium.Leterme was the Prime Minister of Belgium from March 2008 to December 2008...
's formation memorandum in DutchDutch languageDutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
, as published on DeMorgen.be. - The Power of People - 2, the second version of Yves LetermeYves LetermeYves Camille Désiré Leterme is a Flemish Belgian politician, a leader of the Christian Democratic and Flemish party , and the 48th Prime Minister of Belgium.Leterme was the Prime Minister of Belgium from March 2008 to December 2008...
's formation memorandum in FrenchFrench languageFrench is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, as published on LaLibre.be. Memorandum on asylum and migration policy agreed to by the orange-blue parties. Memorandum on foreign affairs and defence agreed to by the orange-blue parties. Memorandum on justice agreed to by the orange-blue parties. Memorandum on justice agreed to by the orange-blue parties. Memorandum on sustainable quality of life agreed to by the orange-blue parties.
See also
- 2007–2011 Belgian political crisis
- Partition of BelgiumPartition of BelgiumThe partition of Belgium, or the dissolution of the Belgian state through the separation of the Dutch-speaking people of the Flanders region and Brussels from the French-speaking people of the Walloon region and Brussels, granting them either independence or respective accession to the Netherlands...
- Belgian general election, 2007Belgian general election, 2007The 2007 Belgian general election took place on Sunday 10 June 2007. Voters went to the polls in order to elect new members for the Chamber of Representatives and Senate.Eligible voters were Belgian citizens 18 years and older...
- State reform in BelgiumState reform in BelgiumThe term State reform in the Belgian context indicates a process towards finding constitutional and legal solutions for the problems and tensions between the different segments of the Belgian population, mostly Dutch-speakers of Flanders and French-speakers of Wallonia...
- 2010–2011 Belgian government formation
External links
- Coalitie07 - Dossier on the coalition talks on the website of De StandaardDe StandaardDe Standaard is a Flemish daily newspaper published in Belgium by Corelio . Circulation was about 102.280 in 2007. It was traditionally a Christian-Democratic paper, associated with the Christian-Democratic and Flemish Party, and in opposition to the Socialist Flemish daily De Morgen...
. - Formatie - Dossier on the coalition talks on the website of De MorgenDe MorgenDe Morgen is a Flemish newspaper with a circulation of 53,860. It originates from a merger in 1978 of two socialist newspapers Vooruit and Volksgazet ....
. - Formatie - Dossier on the coalition talks on the website of Het VolkHet VolkHet Volk may refer to:*Het Volk , Flanders, Belgium*Het Volk, also called Omloop Het Volk, a semi-classic one-day bicycle race in Flanders, Belgium, sponsored by the newspaper*Het Volk , Transvaal political party...
. - Formatie - Dossier on the coalition talks on the website of Het Laatste NieuwsHet Laatste NieuwsHet Laatste Nieuws is a Dutch language newspaper based in Brussels, Belgium. It was founded by Julius Hoste Sr. on 7 June 1888. It is now part of De Persgroep, and has a circulation of 292,410 copies, making it the most popular newspaper in Flanders and Belgium.- Comics :During World War II, The...
. - Formatie - Leterme I - Dossier on the coalition talks on Vrtnieuws.net, the news site of the Vlaamse Radio- en TelevisieomroepVlaamse Radio- en TelevisieomroepThe Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroeporganisatie , or VRT, is a publicly-funded broadcaster of radio and television in Flanders ....
. - Elections 2007 - Dossier on the 2007 Belgian general election and the coalition talks on the website of Le SoirLe SoirLe Soir is a Berliner Format Belgian newspaper. Le Soir was founded in 1887 by Emile Rossel. It is the most popular Francophone newspaper in Belgium, and considered a newspaper of record.-Editorial stance:...
. - Négociations à rallonge - Dossier on the coalition talks on the website of La Libre BelgiqueLa Libre BelgiqueLa Libre Belgique is a Belgian newspaper in French. In Belgium, it can be roughly seen as an equivalent of Flemish De Standaard. The paper is widely perceived as pro-catholic...
. - Elections 2007 - Dossier on the 2007 Belgian general election and the coalition talks on RTLinfo.be, the news site of the RTLRTL GroupRTL Group is Europe's largest TV, radio and production company, and is majority-owned by German media conglomerate Bertelsmann. It has 45 television and 32 radio stations in 11 countries...
.