MPs in the Federal Parliament have approved the 2026 budget. In a vote held on Thursday. The budget was passed with 77 votes in favour and 59 against. An assessment of the current state of public finances is due to be presented sometime next week. The Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever (Flemish nationalist) says that in addition to the measures contained in the budget approved on Thursday several billion euro will still need to be saved to achieve medium-term budgetary balance.
A consequence of last year’s protracted budget negotiations was that the 2026 budget could not be adopted in time before the end of 2025. In the meantime, so-called “provisional twelfths” have been used. This means that monthly expenditure has not been allowed to exceed one twelfth of last year’s budget. The new budget that was aproved by the Federal Parliament will take effect from 1 April.
The 2026 budget anticipates savings of 2.7 billion euro. These will be achieved through cuts to public expenditure and labour market reforms, such as reintegrating the long-term sick into the labour market or reducing expenditure on the long-term unemployed. To generate tax revenue, the budget relies on consumption and purchasing power.
Speaking in the Federal Parliament on Thursday the Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever indicated in Parliament that a further 3 to 4 billion euro will have to be saved in the medium term.
The European Commission has given a cautious assessment of the Belgian budget for 2026. Belgian budgetary policy is under scrutiny by the European Commission due to the excessive budget deficit.