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Belgian Affairs

http://www.belgianaffairs.be/2011/05/index.html

Geplaatst op 11 May 2011. The Last Post: Stuck in the Middle. It has been a while since I posted about Belgian politics, but then again, not that much happened. Im intending to keep this blog low profile until something does happen. As a temporary last post, I want to to explain why Belgium is stuck in the middle between being a central state and being two or three independent states. Why Belgium is deadlocked between the forces that tear it apart and the forces that make it stick together. For economist...

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Belgian Affairs : On the brink of new elections

http://www.belgianaffairs.be/2010/10/on-the-brink-of-new-elections.html

Geplaatst op 18 October 2010. On the brink of new elections. This time its serious. Yesterday, 126 days after the elections, N-VA-president Bart De Wever published a document in which he describes a compromise to solve the political crisis. It was rejected immediately by all the French speaking parties (PS, cdH, Ecolo and even the FDF, which is not negotiating.). Later today Mr. De Wever goes to the king to brief him officially on the results of his mandate of royal clarifier. It seems everything...De Ti...

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Belgian Affairs : Nouriel Roubini on Belgium

http://www.belgianaffairs.be/2010/06/nouriel-roubini-on-belgium.html

Geplaatst op 10 June 2010. Nouriel Roubini on Belgium. Nouriel Roubini in our newsroom. Last night Nouriel Roubini, the famous Cassandra of Columbia University, visited De Tijd and LEcho to give a lecture on the future of capitalism. He also made an assessment of Belgian economy and politics. It goes like this:. According to Roubini, Belgium isnt Greece. Government debt is very high, but not as high as in Greece. The budget deficit is significant, but not as dramatic as in Greece. Agreed with it earlier ...

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Belgian Affairs : A Flemish Octopus

http://www.belgianaffairs.be/2010/06/a-flemish-octopus.html

Geplaatst op 16 June 2010. The first formal steps towards a new government have been taken. King Albert II Monday summoned N-VA-president Bart De Wever. And PS-president Elio Di Rupo. Yesterday the two winners of the elections spoke each other for the first time. (It is said they once met each other at a tennis game, but they didnt speak.) Nobody knows where they met, or what they said. That is a good sign. In our last blog we focused on the silver linings. This Octopus Note is one of the curiosities of ...

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Belgian Affairs : Caretaking problems

http://www.belgianaffairs.be/2010/10/instant-problem-solving.html

Geplaatst op 28 October 2010. You could call it a variation on a theme. The theme is the deadlock in negotiations for a state reform, the new variation is called royal mediator. Johan Vande Lanotte. Appointed last week, the former president of the Flemish socialist party and former vice-prime-minister now has to find a way to bridge the gap between Flemish and French speaking politicians. In the meantime, the caretaker government of Yves Leterme is facing problems it cant solve because it hasnt got full ...

belgianaffairs.be

Belgian Affairs

http://www.belgianaffairs.be/2011/01/index.html

Geplaatst op 24 January 2011. No government, great country. Picture by Bert Van den Broucke / Photo News. Not a lot was changing in Belgian politics over the last few months. Markets got a bit nervous, but then rediscovered the good economic fundamentals. And slowed down. People didnt care. And politicians were driving in circles, meeting the same obstacles over and over again. Lenfer cest la répétition. I think last Sundays manifestation  - amplified by the other initiatives - can change som...The messa...

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Belgian Affairs : Reboot

http://www.belgianaffairs.be/2010/10/reboot.html

Geplaatst op 4 October 2010. 113 days after the elections, the N-VA rebooted the negotiations for a state reform. N-VA-president Bart De Wever announced on Monday that continuing to talk with the socialists (PS and sp.a), christian-democrats (CD&V and cdH) and the Greens (Groen! And Ecolo) leads to nothing. It is important to explain what this means and what it doesnt mean. The Last Post: Stuck in the Middle. Moving in the wrong direction. No government, great country. Why nobody seems to care.

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Belgian Affairs : An MP of the seventies, an Octopus and the fear of poverty

http://www.belgianaffairs.be/2010/10/an-mp-of-the-seventies-an-octopus-and-the-fear-of-poverty.html

Geplaatst op 19 October 2010. An MP of the seventies, an Octopus and the fear of poverty. It seems the deadlock in Belgian politics is getting worse. All the Flemish parties approve the compromise text. That royal clarifier (and N-VA-president) Bart De Wever made for king Albert II. De Wever said the text is his best offer and that he wont go lower. The French speaking parties are furious and reject the compromise. 1 It is a big leap forwards for a more autonomy in Flanders. We explained why this is impo...

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Belgian Affairs : The Belgian Bond Miracle

http://www.belgianaffairs.be/2010/11/the-belgian-bond-miracle.html

Geplaatst op 5 November 2010. The Belgian Bond Miracle. Sometimes Belgians (should) have the feeling they are living on another planet. Just take the news this week. The eurozone peripherals (Greece, Ireland, .) are wobbling again. The Fed started QE2. The OECD warned that the time for normal economic policies will not come in 2011, but in 2012 at the earliest. Why do Belgian government bonds continue to fly under the radar of international investors? There a couple of reasons. 1 As Nouriel Roubini.

belgianaffairs.be

Belgian Affairs : No government, great country

http://www.belgianaffairs.be/2011/01/shame.html

Geplaatst op 24 January 2011. No government, great country. Picture by Bert Van den Broucke / Photo News. Not a lot was changing in Belgian politics over the last few months. Markets got a bit nervous, but then rediscovered the good economic fundamentals. And slowed down. People didnt care. And politicians were driving in circles, meeting the same obstacles over and over again. Lenfer cest la répétition. I think last Sundays manifestation  - amplified by the other initiatives - can change som...The messa...