Diependaele’s Final Offer as Budget Deadline Looms

Flemish Minister-President Matthias Diependaele (N-VA) has put a “best and final offer” before his government in a last-ditch attempt to secure a budget agreement, as negotiations reach what VRT NWS describes as a make-or-break moment. The ultiem voorstel was presented to the ministerial council on Monday morning, hours before Diependaele is due to deliver his traditional September Statement (Septemberverklaring) in the Flemish Parliament at 14:00.

“Diependaele is pushing through. We are heading for make or break,” said VRT NWS political journalist Bart Verhulst, as reported in the outlet’s live blog covering the talks.

A Weekend of Deadlock

The offer follows a full weekend of negotiations that ran through the night and into Monday morning without producing a deal. The coalition — a so-called “rocket-ice” alliance of Diependaele’s N-VA, Vooruit and CD&V, sworn in on 30 September 2024 — is under pressure to balance the Flemish government’s 2027 budget.

According to the outlet, the government must find between €1.6 billion and €1.9 billion in savings and extra revenue, a range deliberately kept flexible to ease concessions in the final phase. The Flemish budget runs to roughly €65 billion annually, with more than half absorbed by education and welfare.

Talks resumed early on Monday after a weekend that saw the full ministerial council convene from 05:00, followed by a fresh round of bilateral, party-by-party discussions — a format criticised by some observers as a “confession-father procedure” because the Minister-President, as an N-VA member, negotiates with partners from his own governing party.

The Contested Measures

Several dossiers remain stubbornly contested. Among them is the Groeipakket, Flanders’ child benefit system, where Diependaele floated replacing the roughly €1,310 startbedrag paid at birth with a “Flemish Growth Fund” that would invest the money and pay out close to €4,400 when the child turns 18. The idea drew a cool response from Vooruit and CD&V.

“I think it’s important that every child keeps their child benefit,” said Welfare Minister Caroline Gennez (Vooruit), calling the proposal “a little idea.” “This is enormously important in the fight against child poverty.”

Other sticking points, per the live blog, include higher registration duties on the portion of a home purchase above roughly €500,000 — a measure N-VA views warily — and Vooruit’s suggestion to scrap the €100 Flemish care premium in favour of higher regional surcharges on income tax, which N-VA and CD&V resist. A proposal to raise the water bill by about €87 million was taken off the table, while a partial deal on raising the price of service cheques from €10 to €12 was reported — though parties stressed that nothing is agreed until everything is agreed.

Opposition Fury

The drawn-out process has drawn sharp criticism from opposition parties. Groen faction leader Mieke Schauvliege said the “Diependaele method doesn’t work,” adding: “Whoever waits until the last night to decide on billions is not governing, they are improvising. Strict with citizens, weak with themselves. This is bad governance.”

Vlaams Belang chairman Tom Van Grieken was blunter: “He can’t do it. This Flemish government doesn’t even reach the level of a group project in secondary school.” Anders chairman Frédéric De Gucht called it “pure mismanagement,” arguing the government should cut its own spending rather than target citizens’ pockets.

Even internal voices betrayed unease. “Given the exercise we have to make, it’s evident that opinions and starting points are beginning to clash,” acknowledged Budget Minister Ben Weyts (N-VA).

Analysis: A Governing Style Under Strain

The standoff is as much about method as money. By running negotiations down to the wire and leaning on bilateral talks, Diependaele has kept tight control — but at the cost of transparency and goodwill. As VRT NWS’s Ivan De Vadder noted, night-time bargaining “hasn’t often really produced good results.”

The structural backdrop is familiar across Belgium. The parallel federal government, led by Prime Minister Bart De Wever, is also working toward a budget conclave and must find roughly €10 billion, meaning both levels of government are squeezing the same taxpayers and the same services.

Within Flanders, the pressure points are welfare, education and taxes. Vooruit and CD&V complain that N-VA is shielding its own portfolios — notably education, which Minister Zuhal Demir has said she wants to spare from cuts — while others are asked to give more. That imbalance, more than any single measure, is what has kept a deal out of reach.

What’s Next

All eyes are on the 14:00 deadline. If no agreement is reached, Diependaele would face the unusual step of delivering a September Statement without a budget behind it — a scenario that would deepen the sense of crisis. As of Monday morning, the stated intention remained to meet the deadline.

“For now, the intention is to make the deadline and to be there tomorrow at 14:00 for the September Statement,” VRT NWS political journalist Benedikte Coussement said during the talks. Whether Diependaele’s final offer bridges the gap — or merely sets the terms for another marathon — will be clear within hours.