‘Now that Brussels’ creditworthiness is under threat, the question arises: when will Belgium follow suit?’

A tough task awaits not only the Brussels government, but also the Belgian government.

Things are going from bad to worse in Brussels. The rating agency Standard & Poor’s (S&P) lowered the rating of the Brussels Region at the end of last week. This means that the creditworthiness is estimated lower, with the result that Brussels will have to pay more interest in the future when it borrows. Only found from the Flemish newspapers The time and The last news It is worth reporting about it, but since the Brussels Region lives on federal subsidies and the Brussels red figures are part of the Belgian budget figures that Europe assesses, this concerns us all.

The creditworthiness of Brussels is declining because the budget deficit of the Capital Region will be higher than expected in the coming years and the debt ratio will rise further. This is in line with the budget policy pursued in recent years. Between 2018 and 2022, debt increased by 166 percent. That’s not all. The accounts of the Brussels-Capital Region have been a mess for years. For the third year in a row, the Court of Audit did not formulate an opinion on those accounts ‘due to uncertainties about tax receipts and claims’.

Until now, Brussels Budget Minister Sven Gatz (Open VLD) has laughed off this criticism of the Brussels budget. Now that S&P has downgraded its rating a few months before the elections, he says that Brussels faces a “heavy” effort, with savings, and that it is “important that every current and future minister becomes aware of this, not just the Minister of the Budget ‘. Gatz is silent about the historical responsibility, but Open VLD has been providing the Brussels Minister for Finance and Budget for 25 years without interruption. Then you cannot pretend that you have nothing to do with the Brussels financial mess.

Now that the creditworthiness of Brussels is at risk, the question arises how long it will take before the creditworthiness of the debt-laden French Community, which is responsible for education, among other things, is also downgraded. And when will Belgium follow? A credit reduction for our country would mean that Belgium would also have to pay more interest when it borrows. The rating agency Fitch said a month ago that the prospects for our country are negative. This means that a rating downgrade is possible within six or twelve months if Belgium does not take additional measures to reduce the budget deficit. A tough task awaits not only the Brussels government, but also the Belgian government.