Talks for the formation of a new Flemish coalition government will go a stage further today with a first meeting involving the full negotiating teams from all the parties involved in the talks. On Thursday the Flemish nationalist politician Matthias Diependaele, will be leading the talks, met with the leaders of the socialist party Vooruit and the Christian democrat party CD&V. It was agreed that a full meeting should be held today.
The man whose task it is to form a new Flemish coalition government Matthias Diependale (nationalist) met with the leaders of the two other parties taking part in the talks, the socialist Melissa Depraetere and the Christian democrat Sammy Mahdi on Thursday.
It remains to be seen whether a coalition will ultimately be formed between the Flemish nationalist party N-VA, the Flemish Christian Democrat party CD&V and the Flemish Socialist party Vooruit. However, the next steps were agreed on Thursday. The first full talks will get underway today at the offices of the Flemish Prime Minister on the Martelarenplein in the centre of Brussels.
Mr Diependaele says that "the negotiating team will look at the budgetary starting point”. In addition to Mr Diepeldaele, the Flemish nationalist have three other negotiators in their team. They are the outgoing Flemish Ministers Zuhal Demir and Ben Weyts and the Antwerp Alderman and Flemish MP Annick De Ridder.
The socialist team is made up of the party leader Melissa Depraetere, Flemish MP Conner Rousseau and the ougoing Federal Minister Caroline Gennez.
The Christian democrat leader Sammy Mahdi and the outing Flemish ministers Hilde Crevits and Jo Brouns form the Christian democrat team. Mr Diependaele says that the parties will use the weekend to prepare internally for the coalition talks that will enter full swing next week.