“For example, if you want social housing, you have to learn the language and look for a job,” Depraetere continues. “Those are our conditions.” At the same time, she wonders how many people would not want to integrate. “Very little. The problem is that newcomers often feel abandoned, that no one cares about them. We want to change that. We want to encourage them. For example, we do not think it is good that the Flemish government has made language courses chargeable. In this way you make integration more difficult.”
Vooruit will only join the next federal government if there is a tax reform. This should widen the difference between working and not working. “500 euros is a good target,” says Depraetere. “We want to reduce the burden on labor and shift it to capital, because the money has to come from somewhere. But that won’t be enough. At the same time, the VDAB must become much more persistent.”
Depraetere does not want to know about a limitation in the duration of unemployment benefits. She does repeat the plea for the basic job, as her predecessor Conner Rousseau did last year in the run-up to May 1. “If someone really cannot find work after two years, the government wants to offer a basic job, of course with full wages and social rights,” says the West Flemish woman. Anyone who refuses will face a financial penalty. “But that won’t affect many people,” Depraetere added.
: ‘Anyone who does not want to integrate will lose their money’){kind=link}