"Why Belgium is Borrowing to Finance Projects: The Impact of Pension Reform on European Subsidies"

2023-04-29 04:00:00

In the absence of an agreement on the pension reform, the Belgian State cannot request the payment of the first installment of European subsidies to which it is entitled. It must therefore borrow to finance the projects.

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Journalist at the World Service

By Véronique Lamquin

Published on 04/29/2023 at 06:00
Reading time: 3 mins

DRenovated housing, cycle paths under construction, digitized schools… The Belgian recovery plan is producing its first effects on the ground. Several dozen measures have already been implemented. The cost, for the federal level alone: 479 million already released. An amount that Vivaldi had to largely… borrow. It is that, for the time being, Belgium cannot claim any European payment. At most it has received its down payment, ie 770 million – as a reminder, the total envelope, promised to our country, amounts to 4.5 billion. The fault, again and again, of pension reform, the current outline of which does not meet the requirements of the European Commission – the measures must guarantee the “sustainability” of our pension system, at least be budgetary neutral, or even reduce the cost.

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