Key Highlights
- Bart De Wever, head of the New Flemish Alliance, became Belgium’s prime minister on 3 February 2025, the first Flemish nationalist to hold the post.
- A five‑party coalition—N‑VA, CD&V, Vooruit, MR and Les Engagés (dubbed “Arizona”)—secured a parliamentary majority of 150 seats.
- The new cabinet proposes stricter immigration rules, a reversal of the nuclear‑phase‑out and a defence‑budget boost to 2 % of GDP by 2029.
- Gender balance remains a concern, with only three women among the 15 ministers, while the national debt exceeds 100 % of GDP.
Detailed Insights
The De Wever administration is poised to overhaul three core policy arenas. Firstly, immigration benefits will be curtailed: newcomers must reside in Belgium for five years before accessing unemployment aid, and family reunification will be subject to tighter eligibility criteria. Secondly, the government intends to repeal the existing nuclear‑phase‑out legislation, commissioning new reactors to diversify the energy mix and diminish reliance on fossil fuels. Lastly, defence spending—currently around 1.3 % of GDP—will be escalated to 2 % by 2029 and to 2.5 % by 2034, aligning Belgium with NATO’s strategic targets. These reforms unfold against a backdrop of fiscal strain, with public debt surpassing the nation’s total output, and criticism over the cabinet’s limited female representation.
Key Concepts
- Arizona coalition: The informal name for the five‑party alliance that commands a majority in Belgium’s federal parliament.
- Nuclear phase‑out reversal: Policy shift that aborts the planned shutdown of nuclear plants and green‑lights the construction of additional reactors.
- Defence‑spending target: The pledged increase of military expenditure to 2 % of gross domestic product by 2029 and 2.5 % by 2034, meeting NATO guidelines.