Finance Inspection Shreds Verlinden’s Prison Plan as ‘Unfeasible’
Belgium’s Finance Inspection (Inspectie van Financiën) has delivered a devastating critique of Interior Minister Annelies Verlinden’s proposed emergency law to address chronic prison overcrowding, calling the plans “onhaalbaar of zelfs illusoir” — unfeasible or even an illusion. The confidential advice, exclusively obtained by Het Laatste Nieuws, warns that the measures could paradoxically increase the prison population rather than reduce it.
The Scale of the Crisis
On June 1, 2026, Belgian prisons held 13,731 inmates across 19 penitentiary institutions — the highest number ever recorded, exceeding capacity by 21.4 percent. A total of 738 inmates lack a bed and are forced to sleep on mattresses on the floor, including female detainees. The number of floor sleepers has nearly tripled in less than a year, rising from 245 to 738 despite a previous emergency law enacted in August 2025.
As HLN reported earlier this week, inmates describe conditions as inhumane. One detainee, identified only as Amina (26), described sharing a two-person cell with three women, eating on the floor due to a lack of chairs, and being woken repeatedly at night when cellmates need the toilet.
What the Plan Intended
Verlinden’s ‘noodwet bis’ (emergency law 2.0) aimed to accelerate the outflow of convicted inmates through electronic monitoring (ankle bracelets), expedite the transfer of foreign detainees to their home countries, and target up to 5,000 convicted individuals currently awaiting prison placement.
Why the Finance Inspection Says It Will Fail
The Inspectie van Financiën, the inter-federal control service overseeing government expenditures, calculated that even if all measures were implemented immediately — including for serious violent and drug offenders — 430 inmates would be released. However, 443 convicted individuals with suspended sentences would be newly incarcerated, plus 100 with interrupted sentences. The net result: a potential increase of 100 inmates.
“Confronted with the harsh reality of the figures, this goal seems unfeasible or even an illusion,” the Inspection wrote in its advice. “An extensive and immediate application of the measures would actually lead to an increase in the prison population instead of a decrease.”
Political Constraints Undermine the Plan
The report highlights that the law excludes those convicted of terrorism, sexual violence, and — under pressure from MR chairman Georges-Louis Bouchez — drug offenses from electronic monitoring. This leaves too small a pool of eligible inmates to make a meaningful difference.
“There are too many exceptions, meaning hardly any detainees qualify for an electronic tag,” a government source told HLN.
Additional data presented to all coalition parties showed that while more inmates could receive ankle bracelets — potentially reducing floor sleepers by 116 this year — the tightened emergency law would simultaneously keep 113 inmates in custody. The measures effectively cancel each other out.
Unpredictable Long-Term Impact
The Inspection further noted that due to “the large number of parameters and unknown factors,” the minister is “simply unable to make an estimate of the impact this preliminary draft law will have in the coming years.”
Verlinden has previously acknowledged the political constraints, stating: “In a coalition, we look for what is jointly feasible and defensible. The emergency law and outflow via electronic monitoring proved to be the maximum achievable within the Arizona government.”
Broader Context
Belgium’s prison crisis has deep structural roots. The country’s 19 penitentiary institutions have a combined capacity of approximately 11,300 inmates, yet the population has consistently exceeded this threshold. The first emergency law enacted in August 2025 was intended to create more space but had the opposite effect, with the number of floor sleepers tripling in under a year.
The crisis is compounded by a staffing shortage, with prison staff repeatedly going on strike over overcrowding, rising violence, and heavy workloads. The Central Supervisory Council for Prisons recently described the situation as a “humanitarian emergency.”
What’s Next
The Finance Inspection’s advice is non-binding but carries significant political weight. A negative assessment can derail legislative proposals, and this critique represents a serious blow to Verlinden’s credibility on prison policy. The question now is whether she will revise the ‘noodwet bis’ in light of the Inspection’s findings or push forward regardless.
With 738 inmates sleeping on floors and no viable solution in sight, conditions in Belgian prisons are likely to deteriorate further. The structural issues — sentencing policy, prison capacity, and alternative sanctions — require coalition-wide consensus that currently seems elusive. The coming weeks will reveal whether the Arizona government can find common ground on one of Belgium’s most pressing humanitarian challenges.