King Philippe has received the preformateurs for the last time before the new government will officially be formed. His Majesty has reaffirmed his trust in the two politicians he has tasked with the formation of a new government by the 1st of October. It promises to be a close call for the new government because, after almost 500 days since the election, there are still unresolved issues between the political parties.
On Monday, King Philippe of the Belgians received Mr Alexander De Croo and Mr Paul Magnette at the Royal Palace of Brussels. The two politicians are the current preformateurs tasked by the King to form a new federal government. During the meeting, the preformateurs updated His Majesty on the progress they have made. After the meeting, the King asked them to submit their final report as soon as possible.
At the moment, seven political parties are negotiating a coalition agreement, a document in which the various parties set out the guidelines that the new government is to follow in the coming years. After a coalition agreement is made, the parties can officially form a new federal government. After almost 500 days of negotiating in different formations, with different parties and on various topics, there is still no final coalition agreement nor a new federal government.
Time is running out for the preformateurs and the expected new government, which has been given the unofficial name “Vivaldi” after the famous composer of The Four Seasons. The deadline is set on the 1st of October. It is the tradition that the previous federal government, led currently by Prime Minister Sophie Wilmès, continues to handle the essential cases as long as there is no new government. At the start of the COVID-19 crisis, this “temporary” federal government received “extraordinary powers” from the parliament to effectively tackle the coronavirus. However, their “extraordinary powers” expire on the 1st of October. It is, therefore, necessary that there be a new government by Thursday.
His Majesty King Philippe has played an important role in the government formation process. Officially, it is the King who takes the first initiative to form a government after the general elections. Besides the rounds of consultations with the party leaders and the appointments of “formateurs” and “informateurs”, His Majesty is also regularly updated on the progress of the government formation. According to Belgian law, the King is allowed to have this role as he is neutral. The King and Queen do not vote while other members of the Belgian Royal Family do.
Because the current government formation proved to be a challenging task, His Majesty was more involved to try to make the political parties work together. A few weeks ago, the previous preformateurs had offered their resignation to the King as they didn’t think they could work past their differences. The King firmly denied their resignation and asked them to try to work things out once more. It proved to be a smart move as the same parties are still negotiating today.
During the long formation, King Philippe has been praised for his professionalism. It is said that the King is always well prepared for the meetings, takes the time to listen and actively tries to find solutions. His Majesty remained impartial and tried to solve conflicts. Even during his annual summer holiday, the King remained stand-by for consultations with the politicians.
If the seven parties who wish to form the Vivaldi government can come to an agreement on the budget and on who will become prime minister, the new prime minister and his ministers will be sworn in before the King on Thursday.
