Belgian Politics & Elections: Federal, regional & EP elections on June 9, 2024
       |           

Welcome, Guest. Please login or register.
Did you miss your activation email?
March 28, 2024, 08:29:42 AM
News: Election Simulator 2.0 Released. Senate/Gubernatorial maps, proportional electoral votes, and more - Read more

  Talk Elections
  Other Elections - Analysis and Discussion
  International Elections (Moderators: afleitch, Hash)
  Belgian Politics & Elections: Federal, regional & EP elections on June 9, 2024
« previous next »
Pages: 1 ... 32 33 34 35 36 [37] 38 39 40 41 42 ... 47
Poll
Question: Do you think Chez Nous will get seats?
#1
No, they won't get even 2,5% in Wallonia and Brussels  (what would happen accoding to recent polls)
 
#2
No, but they will get votes in the 2,5%-4,99% rango in Wallonia and/or Brussels
 
#3
No. They will pass the 5% threshold in Wallonia and/or Brussels, but somehow they won't get seats.
 
#4
Yes, they will get 1-2 seats
 
#5
Yes, they will get more than 2 seats
 
Show Pie Chart
Partisan results

Total Voters: 16

Author Topic: Belgian Politics & Elections: Federal, regional & EP elections on June 9, 2024  (Read 137063 times)
LAKISYLVANIA
Lakigigar
Atlas Icon
*****
Posts: 15,165
Belgium


Political Matrix
E: -7.42, S: -4.78

P P P
Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #900 on: December 05, 2022, 07:15:49 PM »
« edited: December 05, 2022, 07:26:06 PM by Laki »

Just a curiosity why orientale and occidentale? and not eastern and western

That's eastern and western in French...

they are the same in italian

I don't know, i live in West Flandres (the only province PVDA doesn't get a seat in), although it would be narrow.

This is the worst poll in terms of seat since last election for christian democrats, liberal family and the green family, they all have the lowest seat count. Flemish nationalist is also on the lower side. And far left is where they usually poll, although i think Brussels poll was better than the Wallonia and Flanders ones.

Best poll for far right in 1.5 years time, and best poll for social democrats since last election, esp. because of the overperformance by the Flemish counterpart where they are at the highest percentage in 15 years.



Also, i'm not voting socdem myself, not a chance. It has little to do with socialism. He's flirting with Danish social democracy, he's faux fake socialist, left liberal and started a personality cult and it works because Flemish people are so dumb.

He's very populist and unlikeable to me. He represents every embarrassing thing about Flanders and our Flemish media. And is also exploiting social media so much to an annoying extent.

He's the guy who said, "i know what it is to be working class, i did a vacation job as dishwasher".
Logged
Zinneke
JosepBroz
YaBB God
*****
Posts: 4,069
Belgium


Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #901 on: December 08, 2022, 04:39:06 AM »

Vintage Walloon political story coming out in Le Soir. Jean-Claude Marcourt, the PS President of the Walloon Parliament and the MR Ombudsman-type figure (who is already on paid leave after allegations of bullying), went on a trip to Dubai with taxpayers money that included a business class flight, five star hotel and a 3000 euro "guide" (heavily hinted to be spent on hookers). They've asked for their own corruption vehicle parliament to investigate.

Meanwhile our public debt is at breaking point.
Logged
LAKISYLVANIA
Lakigigar
Atlas Icon
*****
Posts: 15,165
Belgium


Political Matrix
E: -7.42, S: -4.78

P P P
Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #902 on: December 08, 2022, 05:03:32 AM »

Vintage Walloon political story coming out in Le Soir. Jean-Claude Marcourt, the PS President of the Walloon Parliament and the MR Ombudsman-type figure (who is already on paid leave after allegations of bullying), went on a trip to Dubai with taxpayers money that included a business class flight, five star hotel and a 3000 euro "guide" (heavily hinted to be spent on hookers). They've asked for their own corruption vehicle parliament to investigate.

Meanwhile our public debt is at breaking point.

Wait,

The UAE has hookers?
Logged
Zinneke
JosepBroz
YaBB God
*****
Posts: 4,069
Belgium


Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #903 on: December 08, 2022, 05:10:20 AM »

Vintage Walloon political story coming out in Le Soir. Jean-Claude Marcourt, the PS President of the Walloon Parliament and the MR Ombudsman-type figure (who is already on paid leave after allegations of bullying), went on a trip to Dubai with taxpayers money that included a business class flight, five star hotel and a 3000 euro "guide" (heavily hinted to be spent on hookers). They've asked for their own corruption vehicle parliament to investigate.

Meanwhile our public debt is at breaking point.

Wait,

The UAE has hookers?

If you're rich, every Muslim "conservative" country has hookers. In the UAE they are imported from Ukraine, Russia, etc. Or they are high class "escorts" who advertise themselves on instagram and a Sheikh pms them to come and have a sh**t taken on them for 100k.
Logged
Zinneke
JosepBroz
YaBB God
*****
Posts: 4,069
Belgium


Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #904 on: December 08, 2022, 05:34:16 AM »

It's not the only trip they went on.

https://www.sudinfo.be/id586451/article/2022-12-07/classe-affaires-hotels-quatre-etoiles-dubai-les-voyages-de-luxe-du-greffier

Quote
The clerk of the Walloon parliament, Frédéric Janssens, who has been sidelined since September for his unusual management methods, was running a tight ship. "The choice of means of transport, as well as that of accommodation, and the sometimes surprising titles of colloquia and conferences, give the image of a clerk's office that operated without control, the sole holder of the keys to the kingdom. And in some cases, make us doubt the reasoned use of public money," explain our colleagues from Le Soir.

According to our colleagues, the clerk has made several trips by plane in business class: "4,646 euros for a round trip to Los Angeles in July 2018, 4,308 euros for a three-day flash visit to Montreal and Ottawa in April 2019, 4,887 euros for a trip to a conference in Nashville in August 2019, etc. Sometimes alone, sometimes accompanied by a collaborator". When traveling, he never denied himself anything. Here, a night in a four-star hotel in London, there six nights at 393 euros each at the JW Marriott in Los Angeles, or two nights at 400 euros at the Excelsior Gallia in Milan. For these and other trips, "the rules laid down both by the agents' statute and by the Bureau were respected," Janssens told Le Soir.

Latvia, United States, France, Great Britain, Morocco, Italy, Austria... In the north as in the south, in summer as in winter - with a preference for July and August - the Walloon clerk has shown the same eclecticism in his choice of missions, running from a symposium on inequalities in health systems in Europe to an "Interparliamentary Conference on Stability, Economic Coordination and Governance in the European Union", jumping from the NCSL Legislative Summit in Nashville - which included a presentation on "The Dolly Parton Experience" and another on "American Periods Marked by History, Not Fear" - to a workshop on the "Code of Conduct for Parliamentarians and Parliamentary Staff" in Rabat.

VIPs in Dubai
Le Soir is also interested in the trip he made with Jean-Claude Marcourt to Dubai, from November 11 to 15, 2021. They went to the World Expo. Business class flight contrary to Walloon regulations, hotel at 542 euros per night, guide at more than 3,000 euros, the total cost of the trip is estimated at 19,000 euros according to documents obtained by our colleagues.

A trip that had raised questions in the head of the PTB and Ecolo. "But President Jean-Claude Marcourt had decided," reads Le Soir, recalling that he (editor's note: Marcourt) "understood the reticence" and "measured that criticism would be expressed about the planned mission, but intended to assume it."

In addition to the business flight, Jean-Claude Marcourt and Frédéric Janssens had reserved the VIP lounge for the departure from Zaventem, for 125 euros (excluding VAT). But not for the return trip from Dubai, which seems to have upset the clerk.

Another nice detail in the original Le Soir article : they also claimed expenses on a 9 euro guidebook on Milan.

Logged
Zinneke
JosepBroz
YaBB God
*****
Posts: 4,069
Belgium


Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #905 on: December 09, 2022, 05:10:51 AM »

Just a backdrop to this, Wallonia has two major city infrastructure projects going on, the new station at Mons, seen as a pharaonic tribute to the strongman long time mayor there and current Walloon Minister-President Elio Di Rupo. The result?

https://www.rtbf.be/article/gare-de-mons-huit-ans-de-retard-et-un-budget-multiplie-par-dix-10598690

Quote
[..]
At the end of the competition, Santiago Calatrava was chosen. The subject of the competition was a footbridge to be added to the existing station. This was specified in the specifications at the time. It even forbids touching the existing station (the René Panis station). Calatrava's project was estimated at 37 million euros. This was in 2006.

Two years later, the project "evolved" from a simple footbridge to a brand new station. And the budget was increased tenfold. From 37 million euros (2006) to 205 million euros (in 2012 before the start of the work) to 324 million euros today. All this by changing the specifications. So, we asked ourselves the question: is this modification legal?

According to Thomas Cambier, a lawyer specialising in public procurement law, the answer is clear: it is illegal. "This modification of the specifications seems to me to pose a fairly significant legal problem. For Thomas Cambier, there are two problems: "The purpose of the competition is radically modified, since at the time of the competition, the contract is changed from a contract for the design of a footbridge [...] to a project that consists of building a new station. So it is no longer the same object and, incidentally, it is no longer the same budget. According to our expert, a new public procurement procedure should have been launched.

We therefore asked the SNCB for explanations. In a letter, they explain that 'as in any station site development project, the basic concept is refined during the study phase [...]'. 'A revision of the preliminary project [...] proved to be a more appropriate solution [...]'. 'It is therefore all of these reflections [...] that led to the development of the concept into the final project'. The project was therefore refined... The fact remains that the modification of the specifications is illegal.

Nothing to see here...move along...


Meanwhile, the second major project is the tram in Liège, the road works of which have gutted the city center of its cultural life to an extent. Thankfully though, everything seems above board there...oh wait..

https://www.levif.be/belgique/les-banques-suspendent-le-financement-du-tram-a-liege/

Quote
Six banks, including the European Investment Bank, have suspended financing for the construction of the new tram line in Liege during 2021, according to the annual report of the TramArdent consortium, as reported by L'Echo. This is particularly detrimental to the French contractor Colas, which is accumulating losses due to the long delay in the project.

The new tram line was supposed to be in service by 2022. But the construction site was confronted with the coronavirus pandemic, floods and, above all, the unexpected presence of cables and pipes in the underground of the route. The resulting delays have pushed up the total cost of the project, which is now scheduled for completion in April 2024.

For the Liège contract, TramArdent took out loans of €429 million from the European Investment Bank (EIB), the bank Belfius, the insurer AG Insurance, the French investor Natixis, the German insurer Talanx and the Spanish bank Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA).

Since these six lenders turned off the financing tap, construction company Colas has had to bear "all the costs of carrying out the project, including the cost of financing and the operating costs of the company" TramArdent. For Colas, this means huge losses.

Logged
Zinneke
JosepBroz
YaBB God
*****
Posts: 4,069
Belgium


Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #906 on: December 11, 2022, 04:33:02 AM »

Magnette has called for Marcourt and the whole Walloon parliament's bureau (that manages and approves the fancy trips ) to resign. Marcourt is clinging on. MR and ECOLO want to try and spin this as only Marcourt's fault, but it took a multiparty effort to approve the budget for the fancy jet setter trips. Only PTB really gain from this. They called it out ages ago.

Magnette also humiliated himself on Flemish tv by saying Antwerp and Charleroi had the same rate of unemployment. He said he would never discuss confederalism with the N-VA, which will be used against him when confederalism is inevitable.

Not a good week for the PS as MEP Marie Arena, once famous for claiming 6000 euros on expenses for building a shower in her office, is also implicated in the European Parliament corruption scandal.

I'm sure some Atlas progressives will continue to tell me how cool it is to live in a PS-paradise though.
Logged
CumbrianLefty
CumbrianLeftie
Atlas Icon
*****
Posts: 11,601
United Kingdom


Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #907 on: December 11, 2022, 04:53:38 AM »

I'm sure some Atlas progressives will continue to tell me how cool it is to live in a PS-paradise though.

They do?
Logged
Zinneke
JosepBroz
YaBB God
*****
Posts: 4,069
Belgium


Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #908 on: December 11, 2022, 12:34:52 PM »

I'm sure some Atlas progressives will continue to tell me how cool it is to live in a PS-paradise though.

They do?

I mean, at the time when Wallonia rejected CETA, there were a bunch of cheerleaders of Magnette and the PS - without knowing that it was purely a move to see off PTB.

Marc Tarabella, another PS MEP, has had his office searched. He has made some conveniently timed pro-Qatar speeches at the European Parliament but denies he is involved in the corruption scandal.
Logged
Estrella
Jr. Member
***
Posts: 1,962
Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas)


Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #909 on: December 11, 2022, 01:04:35 PM »

I'm sure some Atlas progressives will continue to tell me how cool it is to live in a PS-paradise though.

They do?

I mean, at the time when Wallonia rejected CETA, there were a bunch of cheerleaders of Magnette and the PS - without knowing that it was purely a move to see off PTB.

Rhetoric and grandstanding like this aside, what policies have the past few PS governments (or the brief MR one for that matter) actually passed?
Logged
LAKISYLVANIA
Lakigigar
Atlas Icon
*****
Posts: 15,165
Belgium


Political Matrix
E: -7.42, S: -4.78

P P P
Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #910 on: December 11, 2022, 02:40:08 PM »

I'm sure some Atlas progressives will continue to tell me how cool it is to live in a PS-paradise though.

They do?

I mean, at the time when Wallonia rejected CETA, there were a bunch of cheerleaders of Magnette and the PS - without knowing that it was purely a move to see off PTB.

I wasn't on atlas back than, but I was proud at the time of Wallonia too but than again i'm part of the Flemish counterpart of PTB.
Logged
Zinneke
JosepBroz
YaBB God
*****
Posts: 4,069
Belgium


Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #911 on: December 11, 2022, 03:01:23 PM »
« Edited: December 11, 2022, 03:05:31 PM by Zinneke »

I'm sure some Atlas progressives will continue to tell me how cool it is to live in a PS-paradise though.

They do?

I mean, at the time when Wallonia rejected CETA, there were a bunch of cheerleaders of Magnette and the PS - without knowing that it was purely a move to see off PTB.

I wasn't on atlas back than, but I was proud at the time of Wallonia too but than again i'm part of the Flemish counterpart of PTB.

I was also against the principles dictating these trade agreements - I didn't think the Canadians were the ones to bear the brunt of it though, and it seriously harmed Wallonia's reputation, making it out as a village gaulois. However, I remember some progressives on here cheering for Wallonia as if it were some Left vs Right football match. The place is not an example of a social democratic success story valiantly fighting neo-liberal Europe, it's a state on a fast track to political decay and economic failure on par with your Maltas, your Greeces, your Hungarys that only gets away with it precisely because they don't rock the boat too much and the Mafia know what the limits are (although their two MEPs here clearly went too far with Qatar). It's not limited to the PS of course, MR and cdH were involved in Publifin. But once the public services start to simply not function, which is becoming increasingly likely, we will see a Greece 2011 scenario.

I'm sure some Atlas progressives will continue to tell me how cool it is to live in a PS-paradise though.

They do?

I mean, at the time when Wallonia rejected CETA, there were a bunch of cheerleaders of Magnette and the PS - without knowing that it was purely a move to see off PTB.

Rhetoric and grandstanding like this aside, what policies have the past few PS governments (or the brief MR one for that matter) actually passed?

I'm not sure what you mean? The PS just looks after its sectoral interests and constantly bangs the drum of Walloon renewal and revival via massive public investment in infrastructure, under new brands like Plan Marshall 2.0, Plan Marshall 2.Vert, Dyle-icon Valley. All of it is gloss and remarketing with heavy doses of fear mongering ("if N-VA get in we will witness a social bloodbath!") to justify massive public spending on white elephant projects or public utility companies that are in private hands, that just help to launder the money of the Liège or Hainaut mafia, while the anachronistic trade unions (whose leaders have bank accounts in Luxemburg -some working class heros!) and various other interest groups get their slice of the pie depending on how good their negotiating power is.
Logged
Zinneke
JosepBroz
YaBB God
*****
Posts: 4,069
Belgium


Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #912 on: December 11, 2022, 03:14:18 PM »

If you want a less politically and alcohol charged analysis of where Wallonia went wrong with its efforts of renewal, this is a good summary article in French :

https://www.rtl.be/info/belgique/economie/-pourquoi-la-wallonie-ne-se-redresse-pas-un-livre-etablit-le-constat-et-les-causes-de-l-echec-du-plan-marshall-1115092.aspx


In fact it goes a long way into answering Omar's initial question.
Logged
Zinneke
JosepBroz
YaBB God
*****
Posts: 4,069
Belgium


Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #913 on: December 12, 2022, 12:20:20 PM »
« Edited: December 12, 2022, 01:33:26 PM by Zinneke »

The scandal is such that we have a peak Belgian surrealism political stand off occuring. The rest of the political bureau of the Walloon Parliament (that approved the expensive trips) are also under pressure but insist Marcourt is the one that profited so is the one that most go to the till. Ecolo's one even said if Marcourt doesn't resign personally, he would at the end of the night causing a blockage. Marcourt has now come out with a statement saying he would be willing to step aside but only for a collective resignation, not a personal one. I actually fell off my chair laughing.



Edit : he has resigned
Logged
Zinneke
JosepBroz
YaBB God
*****
Posts: 4,069
Belgium


Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #914 on: December 14, 2022, 11:44:22 AM »
« Edited: December 14, 2022, 11:49:28 AM by Zinneke »

The N-VA have submitted a motion for the Prime Minister, Alexander De Croo, to resign because he apparently lied to Parliament about his non-approval of the Eva De Bleckere budget (that cost her her job).
Logged
LAKISYLVANIA
Lakigigar
Atlas Icon
*****
Posts: 15,165
Belgium


Political Matrix
E: -7.42, S: -4.78

P P P
Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #915 on: January 13, 2023, 03:37:05 PM »

I posted about this on discord.

The drug wars in Antwerp are now a hot item.

During a shooting a few days ago one minor girl was killed (likely relative to people in drug business). The violence has increased, and almost every day there are shootings, grenade attacks, threats. Our secretary of justice is also in a safehouse after receiving death threats from drug lords.

More calls have been made to stop the war on drugs and to  legalize cocain [which is the option I prefer], because it being illegal is exactly the reason why cocain is so lucrative, while cocain prices were unaffected by inflation indicating that despite more cocain being intercepted, more cocain also finds it way into the European mainland, given the demand has increased.

Could ‘Coke Made in Belgium’ stop drug violence?

Antwerp drug wars: 11-year-old girl dies in shooting

Antwerp Mayor: “Drugs war is in progress”
Logged
Zinneke
JosepBroz
YaBB God
*****
Posts: 4,069
Belgium


Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #916 on: January 14, 2023, 11:36:15 AM »

legalise speed and flood the market with it, making low level dealers want to deal speed rather than coke. Low level dealers are consolidating into cartels because they need protection from the drug war arms race. if you make a replacement drug more easy to deal, they just decide to go into that.
Logged
LAKISYLVANIA
Lakigigar
Atlas Icon
*****
Posts: 15,165
Belgium


Political Matrix
E: -7.42, S: -4.78

P P P
Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #917 on: January 15, 2023, 06:26:36 PM »
« Edited: January 15, 2023, 06:29:55 PM by Senator Laki »

https://www.vrt.be/vrtnws/nl/2023/01/15/van-quickenborne-tot-1000-euro-boetes-voor-betrapt-druggebruike/

Makes me furious.

First they want to legalize pot in their platform, now giving fines to cocain users of 1000 euros, and that's coming from a liberal's mouth. Idiotic politicians.

The bad guys are the ones who deal, not the ones who buy the drugs.
Logged
Zinneke
JosepBroz
YaBB God
*****
Posts: 4,069
Belgium


Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #918 on: January 16, 2023, 06:43:58 PM »

I know at least two card carrying Open VLD members who snort cocaine. I don't think they'll amount to anything, but given Van Quick's réputation in Kortrijk...he isn't exactly an angel either.

The whole media circus around this is designed to scandalise boomers as much as possible, from the invention of the term "yogasniffers" to wanting to deploy the military in Antwerp.
Logged
Zinneke
JosepBroz
YaBB God
*****
Posts: 4,069
Belgium


Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #919 on: January 19, 2023, 02:02:08 PM »
« Edited: January 19, 2023, 06:51:50 PM by Zinneke »

4 MR Brussels regional MPs had a trip to Morrocco paid for by the latter's government to have nice photo shoots and say puff piece slogans about the stability in Western Sahara. It includes the head of faction of MR, David Leisterh, a close ally of Georges-Louis Bouchez, who ousted Alexia Bertrand towards VLD.

This spills into Qatargate since it turns out its actually Morrocco that had the most successful lobbying operation bribing Giorgi and Panzeri as well as several others. But also into the extent our public officials love a good foreign trip. Arena in Qatar on their invitation, Marcourt and the MR autocrat-clerk hiring "guides" on taxpayers money in the UAE and now this.

...

*The apparent involvement of some Belgians reflects more the fact that Belgian politicians believe fervently and quite literally that 'where there's muck there's brass'...

Logged
LAKISYLVANIA
Lakigigar
Atlas Icon
*****
Posts: 15,165
Belgium


Political Matrix
E: -7.42, S: -4.78

P P P
Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #920 on: February 02, 2023, 11:22:14 AM »



New  state reform for Flanders, they'll add 15 regions.

I live in South-West Flanders or Zuid-West Vlaanderen. And in the past only lived here or in Vlaamse Ardennen / Flemish Ardennes.
Logged
DavidB.
Atlas Icon
*****
Posts: 13,612
Israel


Political Matrix
E: 0.58, S: 4.26


Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #921 on: February 02, 2023, 12:16:11 PM »



New  state reform for Flanders, they'll add 15 regions.

I live in South-West Flanders or Zuid-West Vlaanderen. And in the past only lived here or in Vlaamse Ardennen / Flemish Ardennes.
And what exactly will these regions add? Seems insane when you already have the federal level, the Flemish level, the provinces, and the municipalities.
Logged
LAKISYLVANIA
Lakigigar
Atlas Icon
*****
Posts: 15,165
Belgium


Political Matrix
E: -7.42, S: -4.78

P P P
Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #922 on: February 02, 2023, 12:25:07 PM »



New  state reform for Flanders, they'll add 15 regions.

I live in South-West Flanders or Zuid-West Vlaanderen. And in the past only lived here or in Vlaamse Ardennen / Flemish Ardennes.
And what exactly will these regions add? Seems insane when you already have the federal level, the Flemish level, the provinces, and the municipalities.

I'm not sure what they'll add, some other people have the same concerns as you have. But i guess they are minor unimportant things implemented for promoting regions, culture, or cooperation with for example police forces etc.
Logged
DavidB.
Atlas Icon
*****
Posts: 13,612
Israel


Political Matrix
E: 0.58, S: 4.26


Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #923 on: February 03, 2023, 01:36:27 PM »

Logged
LAKISYLVANIA
Lakigigar
Atlas Icon
*****
Posts: 15,165
Belgium


Political Matrix
E: -7.42, S: -4.78

P P P
Show only this user's posts in this thread
« Reply #924 on: February 03, 2023, 07:02:53 PM »

Yeah that summarizes it.
Logged
Pages: 1 ... 32 33 34 35 36 [37] 38 39 40 41 42 ... 47  
« previous next »
Jump to:  


Login with username, password and session length

Terms of Service - DMCA Agent and Policy - Privacy Policy and Cookies

Powered by SMF 1.1.21 | SMF © 2015, Simple Machines

Page created in 0.069 seconds with 13 queries.