As a guest in a political duel against Paul Magnette on RTL TVI, Georges-Louis Bouchez recalled that the federal government is carrying out a historic budget consolidation of €32 billion, financed 80% by savings and structural reforms, and only 20% by new revenue, without touching workers, savings or investment. For the MR, the priority remains clear: protect purchasing power and reward work, where the left has left behind one of the worst budgets in the European Union!
The MR President defended a targeted and responsible tax policy: lowering registration duties to 3% for housing, reducing inheritance tax, cutting income tax by up to more than €500 per household, and using hotel VAT, largely paid by foreigners, to contribute to the budget effort. He also recalled that the MR protects gas more than the socialist group in the European Parliament ever did. GLB denounced the “mirage” of the Spanish model, where wages and pensions are lower than in Belgium.
Finally, Georges-Louis Bouchez highlighted that the federal government has reintroduced retirement at 60 for those with a 42-year career, and strengthened early retirement options for arduous professions, while regretting that no serious pension reform was carried out during the decades of socialist rule in Wallonia and Brussels. In conclusion, the MR President recalled the guiding principle of the liberals: protecting citizens through greater security, a balanced budget, lower taxes for those who work, and more effective education, in order to break with the economic fatalism affecting Brussels and Wallonia.