Minister president focuses on ongoing struggle for greater autonomy in Flanders Day speech
Although Flemish nationalist party N-VA now leads both the federal and Flemish governments, minister president Matthias Diependaele focused on the struggle for greater autonomy in his speech to mark the Day of the Flemish Community, 11 July. The struggle is still very much ongoing, he argued.
Diependaele gave his first traditional 11 July speech in Kortrijk to mark the occasion.
“There is still a lack of self-government to secure our Flemish prosperity. This is the result of structural flaws in the federal state structure,” he said.
He then mentioned the Flemish municipalities with language facilities where Dutch is under pressure. In those municipalities, residents can request official documents in French, even though the administrative language is Dutch. This has been a politically sensitive issue for a long time. He also talked about the lack of Dutch-language healthcare in Brussels.
"Even where our rights are set out in black and white on paper, attempts are being made to attack them"
In Brussels, French speakers are trying “desperately to form a government without a Dutch-speaking majority,” according to Diependaele. “This is the proof: even where our rights are set out in black and white on paper, attempts are being made to attack them.” He insisted that there would be no Brussels government without a Dutch-speaking majority.
“Federal policy must serve Flanders,” he said. “We want to sit down with our federal and Walloon counterparts to better anchor our rights in the state structure and bring more powers to Flanders.”
Budgetary discipline
Finally, he discussed budgetary discipline. According to him, the federal government is working on a discipline modelled on the Flemish system, and Flemish finances are the strongest in the country “and can easily stand the comparison with other European countries”.
“Budgetary discipline is not an end in itself, but an anchor in turbulent times. This is how we steer the Flemish ship safely through the storm,” he said.
“Budgetary discipline is not an end in itself, but an anchor in turbulent times"
However, earlier this week, the Social and Economic Council of Flanders did not bring good news about the budget. The deficit is expected to rise to 753 million euros in 2027, and debt is expected to rise to 1.65 billion euros by 2029.
#FlandersNewsService | Flemish minister-president Matthias Diependaele addressed the audience for the Day of the Flemish Community © BELGA PHOTO KURT DESPLENTER
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