Brussels Government presents a balanced budget once more

The Brussels Government has met today to discuss the 2020 budget. Those negotiations have come to an end. Brussels continues the tradition of recent years and has a balanced budget once again. Next year there will also be room for new investments.

For example, an additional € 30 million will be added to the renewed system of child benefits, a competence of the Common Community Commission. There is also room for new initiatives in the French Community Commission (Cocof) and the Flemish Community Commission (VGC). In addition, investments will be made in the Silvertower project, which will centralize the regional administration in one building in order to provide better services.

To determine the budget, the strategic investments of the Region in subways and tunnels, are kept outside the budget objective. This concerns an amount of 500 million euros.

Achieving a balanced budget was not possible without savings. All ministers will seek remediation and efficiency gains in their own areas for a total amount of 180 million euros.

Minister of Finance and Budget Sven Gatz: "After a good report from credit rating agency Standard & Poor's a few weeks ago, this balanced budget shows that the Brussels government is a good householder looking after the income and expenditure of the Brussels-Capital Region."

In the 2020 spring budget control, further choices will be made to implement the investments agreed in the coalition agreement.

The budget will, as always, be submitted and discussed in Parliament at the end of October.