| Party for Freedom and Progress | |
|---|---|
| French name | Parti de la Liberté et du Progrès |
| Dutch name | Partij voor Vrijheid en Vooruitgang |
| Founded | 1961 |
| Dissolved | 1992 |
| Preceded by | Liberal Party |
| Succeeded by | Flemish Liberals and Democrats, Liberal Reformist Party |
| Ideology | Classical liberalism |
| International affiliation | Liberal International |
| European affiliation | European Liberal Democrat and Reform Party |
| European Parliament Group | Liberal Democrat and Reform |
| Politics of Belgium Political parties Elections |
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The Party for Freedom and Progress (Dutch: Partij voor Vrijheid en Vooruitgang; French: Parti de la Liberté et du Progrès; German: Partei für Freiheit und Fortschritt) was a liberal party in Belgium which existed from 1961 until 1992 and was the successor of the Liberal Party, which had roots dating back to 1846. It was succeeded in Flanders by the Flemish Liberals and Democrats (VLD) and in Wallonia by the Parti Réformateur Libéral, Parti des Réformes et des Libertés de Wallonie and the Mouvement Reformateur. In the German-speaking Community, it still exists as Partei für Freiheit und Fortschritt.
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Omer Vanaudenhove in 1961, changed the Belgian Liberal Party into the Partij voor Vrijheid en Vooruitgang/Parti de la Liberté et du Progrès (PVV/PLP). In 1965 the party obtained a victory in the general elections with 21.6% of the votes. In 1966, the PVV joined the government of Paul Vanden Boeynants. The liberal ministers during this period were Willy De Clercq, Jacques Van Offelen, Frans Grootjans, Herman Vanderpoorten, Charles Poswick and August De Winter
On 27 June 1971 the party was split up in a Flemish (PVV) and Walloon party (Parti Réformateur Libéral). Only a few months later, on 24 September 1971, the parliament was dissolved. In the elections which followed The Flemish PVV gained votes, but the Walloon PRL lost in the elections.
In this period (1971-1992) the PVV ministers in the government were: Willy De Clercq, Herman Vanderpoorten, Herman De Croo, Karel Poma, Alfred Vreven, André Kempinaire, Guy Verhofstadt, Louis Waltniel, Jean Pede, Patrick Dewael, Ward Beysen, and Jacky Buchmann.
The PRL ministers in the government were: André Damseaux, François-Xavier de Donnea, Jean Gol, Louis Olivier, Charles Poswick, and Michel Toussaint.
In Flanders, the PVV ceased to exist in 1992. On 15 November 1992 the the Flemish Liberals and Democrats (VLD) was founded.
In 1976, the name of the party was changed into Parti de Réformes et de la Liberté en Wallonie (PRLW). In 1979, the name was changed to Parti Réformateur Libéral (PRL) after the merger with the Liberal Party of Brussels. In March 2002 the PRL merged with the Partei für Freiheit und Fortschritt (PFF) of the East Cantons, the Front Démocratique des Francophones (FDF) and the Mouvement des Citoyens pour le Changement (MCC) into the Mouvement Réformateur (MR).
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