Michel Government

Michel Government

94th Cabinet of Belgium (since 1830)
Date formed 11 October 2014
People and organizations
Head of government Charles Michel
Head of state Philippe of Belgium
Member party N-VA
MR
CD&V
Open Vld
Status in legislature Coalition
History
Election(s) 2014
Incoming formation 2014 Belgian government formation
Previous Di Rupo
The government's nickname, the "Swedish coalition", refers to the flag of Sweden (pictured)

The Michel Government is the incumbent Federal Government of Belgium formed following the 2014 Belgian government formation and sworn in on 11 October 2014.

Coalition

The government consists of a centre-right coalition of the New Flemish Alliance (N-VA), Christian Democratic and Flemish (CD&V), the Open Flemish Liberals and Democrats (Open Vld) and the Reformist Movement (MR). It is nicknamed "Swedish coalition" due to the colours yellow (N-VA), blue (liberal, i.e. MR and Open Vld) and the cross (CD&V). Initially it was also nicknamed "kamikaze coalition", due to the MR being the only French-speaking party in this coalition. The French-speaking Socialist Party is not part of the government for the first time in 25 years.

Another unique characteristic of the coalition is the presence of the Flemish nationalist N-VA in the federal government for the first time. No French-speaking party wanted to cooperate with N-VA, but during negotiations MR agreed to on the condition that the government's focus would be on socio-economic issues and that no "communautary" issues (e.g. state reform) would be part of the programme.

Measures and protests

Despite three parties (all but N-VA) having been part of the preceding Di Rupo Government as well, the programme of this coalition differs substantially from the previous one. The emphasis is on socio-economic reforms, especially through austerity measures. Important goals for the parties include helping businesses be more competitive, and increasing job growth.

The measures were met by protests primarily of the labour unions, arguing that the measures favour employers and disproportionately affect employees and regular families. The unions, ACV/CSC, ABVV/FGTB and ACLVB/CGSLB, who have an important and institutionalised role in Belgium's political process, did not accept the government's offer for dialogue, saying the government is not willing to reconsider any measure anyway. Instead, the unions organised several regional and national strikes in November and December 2014, culminating in a one-day general strike on 15 December.[1]

An often recurring subject is whether or not a capital gains tax should be introduced, and tax reform in general.

Composition

The Constitution requires an equal number of Dutch- and French-speaking ministers (regardless of the Prime Minister). Since MR is the only French-speaking party, it has more minister than it would otherwise get with its electoral weight; this is compensated by having only Dutch-speaking Secretaries of State.

Minister Name Party
Prime Minister Charles Michel MR
Deputy Prime Minister – Minister of the Interior Jan Jambon N-VA
Deputy Prime Minister – Minister of Foreign Affairs Didier Reynders MR
Deputy Prime Minister – Minister of Employment, Economy, Consumer Affairs Kris Peeters CD&V
Deputy Prime Minister – Development Cooperation, Digital Agenda, Telecom and Postal Services Alexander De Croo Open Vld
Minister of the Middle Class, SMEs, Self-employed and Agriculture Willy Borsus MR
Minister of Budget Hervé Jamar MR
Minister of Energy Marie-Christine Marghem MR
Minister of Mobility Jacqueline Galant MR
Minister of Pensions Daniel Bacquelaine MR
Minister of Defence Steven Vandeput N-VA
Minister of Finance Johan Van Overtveldt N-VA
Minister of Justice Koen Geens CD&V
Minister of Social Affairs and Health Maggie De Block Open Vld
Secretary of State Name Party
Secretary of State for Asylum, Migration and Administrative Simplification Theo Francken N-VA
Secretary of State for fighting Poverty and Fraud and Scientific Policy Elke Sleurs N-VA
Secretary of State for Foreign Trade Pieter De Crem CD&V
Secretary of State for Social fraud, Privacy and the North Sea Bart Tommelein Open Vld

References

  1. ↑ "Belgium grinds to a halt for one-day general strike". The Guardian. 2014-12-15. Retrieved 2014-12-15.