Talking Points
Food for the global soul
Tensions rise as coalition talks drag on
Elio Di Rupo, who hopes to become Belgium’s first francophone prime minister in 30 years, seemed no closer to his goal this week, despite the extension of his coalition-building mission by King Albert II. Di Rupo, who leads the fra...
Obama to visit EU summit
American President Barack Obama will be attending the EU-US Summit in Lisbon in November. During the summit Mr Obama will hold high level talks with the European President, Belgium's Herman Van Rompuy, and the President of the European Commission, Jo...
Di Rupo faces moment of truth over coalition
Elio Di Rupo, the French-speaking Socialist (PS) leader hoping to become Belgian prime minister, is under pressure to show he has made concrete progress after a month of negotiations on creating a new coalition government. As the country’s &...
Could politicians cost Belgium a World Cup?
A country hoping to host the football World Cup will have to dance to the tune of the almighty FIFA, a fact South Africa discovered this year. The world football association imposes strict conditions upon host countries: exemption from taxes, rigo...
Company cars costing Belgium a fortune
The tax breaks given to companies that provide staff with company cars are costing the Belgian treasury 4 billion Euros a year in lost revenue, according to a report in Tuesday’s edition of the Francophone daily ‘Le Soir’. The fi...
Smears grow as Cardinal questioned
There is one place in Belgium where Cardinal Godfried Danneels can still feel appreciated: inside the Sint-Salvator Cathedral in Bruges, where last Saturday the Cardinal, formerly the primate of the Catholic Church in Belgium, was given a standing ov...
Belgium’s EU presidency kicks off
With a dash of fanfare and fireworks, Belgium took over the European Union’s six-month rotating presidency last week, promising to make the economic crisis its number one priority. Belgium is still lacking a formal government in the wake of ...
Belgium still casts shadow on Congo
As Congo began celebrating half a century of independence from Belgian rule this week, the painful legacy of the colonial experience was still causing irritation between the two countries. King Albert II, Queen Paola and caretaker Prime Minister Y...
Sexism and the city
Watching the first Sex and the City movie, I ask myself if this is what women and their foremothers have been fighting for: to hold down successful careers and to keep their lovers and families happy while looking picture perfect at all times. In a w...
Belgium dismisses German ‘plot’ to move Nato away from Brussels
Although both the German and Belgian authorities have denied the claims, Flemish daily Het Laatste Nieuws says it has discovered that Berlin is covertly lobbying Nato to move its headquarters from Brussels to Bonn. The Nato headquarters, in the Br...
Separatists headed for poll triumph
The Belgian political landscape could be radically redrawn at the elections this Sunday: according to opinion polls, Bart De Wever’s Flemish separatist party N-VA (Nieuw-Vlaamse Alliantie, or New Flemish Alliance) is set to become the largest p...
Keep up the haikus, Herman
Having wrung my hands, argued, fretted and written endlessly about the need for greater European engagement with Asia, it’s time to admit: Finally – there seems to be some movement. European leaders, including EU Council President Herm...
Can Belgium steer the EU ship?
Belgium is struggling to show it will be able to provide credible leadership when it takes over the rotating Presidency of the European Union a fortnight after the Belgian parliamentary elections. Outgoing Prime Minister Yves Leterme has promised ...
Bike Trials
Brussels weather, schlepping up the city's steep roads, fear of crazy drivers and arriving at work smelling perhaps not so fresh are the poor excuses we give for leaving our bicycles at home. In fact, only five percent of journeys in Brussels are mad...
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