Every citizen has the right to know how public money is used. Too often, the regional budget is seen as an abstract mass of billions. But scaled down to an understandable level, that of €1,000 in public spending, it becomes a valuable tool for understanding current political priorities… and the choices that will need to be made to guarantee Wallonia a sound budgetary future.
In 2025, the Walloon Region will spend just over €22 billion. If we scale that amount down to a base of €1,000, we get a concrete snapshot of our current regional policy: social support, health, training, mobility, energy, the economy, the civil service… it's all there. It's a faithful reflection of past choices, but also a starting point for looking ahead.
Because we can no longer approach this future carelessly. To restore budgetary balance by 2029, a target set at European level via the ESA standards, Wallonia will need to undertake a recovery effort. Concretely, this means that spending will have to be reduced by around €1.6 billion over four years, equivalent to a reduction of €73.31 for every €1,000 spent. This figure is not a blind cut, it is the result of a rational calculation: going from €22 billion in planned spending in 2025 to €20.4 billion in 2029, according to the projections of the adjusted budget.
Faced with this reality, the MR group in the Walloon Parliament defends a responsible approach. Cutting spending, yes, but not blindly. “We want a Wallonia that spends less, but spends better. It is not about giving up solidarity, but about refocusing it on real priorities, where it is most needed. It is time to turn the page on overly lax management, where too many policies were funded without a serious assessment of their effectiveness or impact,” explains Valérie De Bue, President of the MR group in the Walloon Parliament.
This €1,000 visual shows that savings are possible without giving up on the essentials. Solidarity is maintained, but it can no longer be synonymous with scattergun spending. We need to move away from the logic of piling up expenses and focus on policies that are genuinely useful for emancipation, economic activity and social cohesion.
Our majority has chosen to face up to budgetary truth. We do not want to put off the problems. We want to put Wallonia back on track towards rigorous, forward-looking management. This requires making clear choices, setting priorities, and putting an end to waste.
Less, but better: that is the philosophy the MR defends. Less ineffective spending, better targeted. Less ideology, more evaluation. Fewer unrealistic promises, more concrete results. This does not mean less social justice, quite the opposite: it means credible, sustainable social justice funded with rigour.
We advocate a new culture of public management: a responsible, ambitious and clear-sighted Wallonia. A Wallonia that gives itself the means to achieve its priorities. A Wallonia that turns its back on cronyism and laxity, to prepare for the future without mortgaging that of future generations.