Restoring its image

Phew! Relief has been palpable in the Belgian business community in recent weeks. Guy Verhofstadt’s new govern-ment, a coalition of five political parties, has, since 18th December, been able to get to work on its interim mission. It is high time. “Belgians are pragmatic, they rarely get worked up in crisis situations like these. But after more than six months of sudden new developments at federal level, business circles, like public opinion, have been getting impatient,” says Olivier Willocx, administrator delegate of Brussels Enterprises Commerce and Industry (BECI). Yet “Companies in Brussels have not suffered. Don’t forget that Belgium is very regionalised so the impact of a federal crisis is not felt as strongly here as it would be elsewhere; in France for example. The seven governments are continuing to work!,” says Olivier Willocx. But one sector that has been affected by the events of 2007 is commercial property, in particular the big strategic investment projects that are waiting for political stabilisation at federal level.
Belgian worries mainly centre on international investors since commentaries on the situation are starting to affect opinion abroad. In December, the President of the wallonne Region, Rudy Demotte, was scheduled to give a speech to the Belgian AmCham (US Chamber). The directors of certain subsidiaries felt obliged to reassure their American headquarters who were asking if the country was in a state of “civil war,” according to reports in the Francophone press. “I think Brussels is having more difficulty defending itself than before on the map in the face of neighbours such as Luxembourg who have both political stability and an attractive tax system,” explains Olivier Willocx. “How, in these circumstances, can international consultants guarantee the institutional future of Belgium to their clients?” Though internal tensions still exist, Brussels hopes it has now saved face.