Open VLD wants to lead Brussels government negotiations
Frédéric De Gucht, the Brussels negotiator for the Flemish liberal party Open VLD, is initiating his own effort to form a regional government, after dismissing a proposal put forward by Les Engagés.
According to French-speaking socialist party PS, De Gucht is inviting various potential government partners for bilateral talks. The PS has said it does not want to abandon the efforts of facilitator Yvan Verougstraete of Les Engagés.
De Gucht rejected the plan as "something that would make the surrealist Magritte envious"
“The Brussels PS continues to support the coalition plan he has proposed, and calls on all parties, including Open VLD, to accept the invitation and begin negotiations on the content and budget,” the party said in a press release.
Seven-party proposal
On Monday, Verougstraete presented a proposal for a seven-party coalition to lead the capital region. MR, PS and Les Engagés would be included on the French-speaking side, while Groen, Vooruit, Open VLD and CD&V would be included on the Flemish side.
Notably absent from this coalition would be N-VA, the Flemish nationalist party of Belgium's prime minister, Bart De Wever. De Gucht rejected the plan outright, comparing it to "something that would make the surrealist Magritte envious and cause Kafka to blush".
De Gucht argued that the proposal did not align with Open VLD’s political priorities, particularly its commitment to incorporating the N-VA into any majority coalition framework.
Both Vooruit and CD&V strongly criticised De Gucht's refusal to join the negotiating table. "We have already lost 15 months due to personal career planning and party interests taking precedence over the interests of Brussels," Vooruit negotiator Ans Persoons said on Tuesday.
State of emergency
On Thursday, various sector and employer organisations declared a state of emergency for the Brussels region due to the ongoing political impasse. Fifteen months after the elections, there is still no fully functioning government, which, according to the organisations, is fuelling a crisis of confidence and the rise of populism.
The organisations are calling on all democratic parties to come together and abandon their vetoes
The Brussels employers' organisation BECI described the situation as "dramatic". In a statement on Thursday, the organisations highlighted a number of pressing issues requiring urgent attention, including the potential loss of unemployment benefits for 30,000 Brussels residents, escalating violence linked to drug trafficking, and the region's unsustainable financial situation.
Sector organisations Comeos, Febiac, Federgon, Embuild.brussels and Febetra also signed the statement. They are calling on all parties to come together, abandon their vetoes and work out a positive and ambitious project for Brussels through dialogue and compromise.
Frederic De Gucht of Open VLD during a press conference on the negotiations to form a new regional government for Brussels, 2 September 2025 © BELGA PHOTO NICOLAS MAETERLINCK
Related news
