Belgian Prime Minister De Wever's resignation was rejected

King Philippe of Belgium did not accept the resignation of Prime Minister Bart De Wever.

The Royal Palace announced that the government will immediately restart budget negotiations in order to resolve the political crisis that brought the coalition to the point of dissolution.

Prime Minister De Wever submitted his resignation on Monday, November 2, on the grounds that months-long negotiations over the 10 billion euro (561.10 billion Turkish Lira) spending cut and tax increases, which he deemed necessary to stabilize the Belgian finances, ended in disagreement.

In the statement made by the Palace after today's meeting between King Philippe and De Wever, it was stated that the coalition partners will immediately restart negotiations in order to resolve the remaining differences of opinion and prevent a government crisis that may lead to early elections.

The statement included the following statements:

"His Majesty received Prime Minister Bart De Wever at the Royal Palace. The King noted that, following his contacts with the leaders of the five parties that make up the parliamentary majority, all parties wish to complete the budget negotiations as soon as possible."

The Palace reported that party leaders expressed that they were ready to make concessions in order to reach a compromise.

King Philippe has called for a balance between preserving social solidarity and promoting economic growth, while party leaders have pledged to prioritize seeking compromise to achieve this goal.

Prime Minister De Wever, who has been tasked with initiating the new round of negotiations in line with the developments, will present the results to the King on Monday, November 16.

De Wever justified his decision to resign with the failure of the 2027 budget talks.

The parties in the ruling coalition could not reach an agreement on savings measures worth approximately 10 billion euros.

The Prime Minister presented a budget plan that included tougher savings measures at the end of October.

These measures include a 2 billion euro cut in healthcare spending, an increase in the VAT rate from 21 percent to 22 percent, and the consolidation of reduced rates (6 percent and 12 percent) on certain categories of goods and services into a single rate (9 percent).

According to Eurostat data, Belgium's public debt reached 110.2 percent of GDP at the end of the second quarter of 2026.

The Belgian Central Bank estimates that public debt will rise to 111.3 percent of GDP by the end of the year.