The outgoing Flemish finance, budget and housing minister Matthias Diependaele (nationalist) has been appointed Flemish “Formateur” and will lead talks the aim of which is to form a new Flemish coalition government.
Mr Diependaele was appointed “Formateur” by the leader of his party Bart De Wever. For the past week or so Mr De Wever has been “Informateur” the person charged with paving the way for coalition talks both at a federal level (at the behest of the King) and at the Flemish level (as the leader of the largest party in the Flemish Parliament.
With the socialist, the Christian democrats and the nationalists all having said that they are prepared to start negotions on the formation of a new Flemish Government, Mr De Wever has handed over the baton to his party colleague, whose job it will now be lead the negotiations for the formation of a Flemish Government .
The nationalists’ negotiating team will consist of the outgoing Flemish government ministers Zuhal Demir and Ben Weyts and the Flemish MP Annick De Ridder. The party intends to use the outgoing Flemish Prime Minister Jan Jambon as part of its federal coalition negotiating team together with Mr De Wever. In a statement the party was keen to stress that the coice of negotiators was no a reflection of who the party might choose to become a minister in the new Flemish or Federal government.
The socialists have selected their party leader Melissa Depraetere, the Flemish MP Conner Rousseau and the outgoing federal minister Caroline Gennez as their negotiating team.
The Christian democrats will be sending their leader Sammy Mahdi and the outgoing Flemish Minister Hilde Crevits and Jo Brouns to the negotiations.