"Time to take up responsibility" 02/11/2007 00:00

2 November 2007

BRUSSELS – "It is time for the negotiators to take up their responsibility in the best interests of the country." Formateur Yves Leterme said this on the television news broadcasts of VRT and VTM.

Leterme knows that he is conducting the most difficult government formation negotiations in Belgium's history, but is convinced that the country deserves "a good coalition accord that includes strong measures," the formateur said on the VTM news. "It is time to stop the provocations back and forth and take up responsibility," he said on VRT.

The formateur admits that "it has taken long enough." "The people who have been granted the trust of the population must now demonstrate that they are worthy of that trust," Leterme said.

Leterme left no doubt about the fact that a government cannot be formed until a solution has been found for the issue of the Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde electoral region. "The decision of the court of arbitration must be respected and a good solution must be found."

Leterme said the government formation process had a "reasonable chance of success." At the same time he knows that the negotiations cannot drag on for much longer, because "the population will not tolerate that." Leterme did not want to commit to the date of 15 November, "it could also be 20 or 30 November," he said.

[Copyright Expatica News 2007]

Subject: Belgian news