New Monitoring Committee report: Federal budget deficit to reach 40bn euros in 2030

A new report from the Monitoring Committee confirms recent reviews by the Federal Planning Bureau and the National Bank: Belgium's budget deficit will continue to rise in the coming years.

This year, the federal accounts will be 4 per cent of GDP in the red. By the end of the legislative period in 2029, this would rise to 5.2 per cent of GDP, according to the committee's report. The current government's coalition agreement aims for a deficit of 3 per cent by the next elections.

In 2030, the federal deficit would rise further to 5.4 per cent, to about 40 billion euros. That year, the national debt would amount to 122 per cent.

“We take these signals seriously,” Finance minister Vincent Van Peteghem told De Morgen. “These figures also emphasise the need to focus on the long term. It should motivate everyone to implement our reforms as quickly as possible.”

^{Finance minister Vincent Van Peteghem © BELGA PHOTO MARIUS BURGELMAN}

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