Without a government since the June 2024 elections, Brussels would badly need the MR to set things right. Unfortunately, that is not the direction being taken. However, at their Brussels New Year's celebration, the liberals expressed their hope and determination to act to change things.
The national president of the Jeunes MR, Cédric De Buf, and the president of the Brussels Jeunes MR, Stéphane Gurbuz, opened their speech with humour, noting that Les Engagés held their New Year's celebration at Autoworld on the very day a new tax on motorists was announced. Despite grim news in the capital (the disappearance of debate culture at ULB, the rise of the far left, rhetoric that promotes dependency among young people), the Jeunes MR remained resolutely positive, championing work and equal opportunity: "no matter where you come from, no matter which neighbourhood we were born in, whether in Uccle, Watermael-Boitsfort, Molenbeek or Schaerbeek, we want everyone today to have the means and the same tools to succeed. Thank you to the MR for the reform of time-limited unemployment benefits, for the future refinancing of police zones, for the ambition given to the self-employed, and for putting the word success back at the heart of education."
Pending the election of a new regional president in Brussels, the various MR ministers from the capital took the floor, starting with the Minister for SMEs and Self-Employed Workers, Eléonore Simonet, as part of her dialogue with self-employed people based on randomly drawn questions. She stated: "At federal level, we did not hesitate to fight back when some wanted to massively increase VAT, which would have sent the bill for phones, cars or housing soaring for everyone. For the MR, that was a no, and we held firm to defend purchasing power. At the same time, we carried out fundamental reforms so that work becomes the norm again: VAT compensation for the hospitality sector, extension of flexi-jobs, more hours for students, more flexible night work, and the return of the trial period, because working must always pay off.
Bernard Quintin, Minister for Security, looked back on his objectives and results: "In 2025, everyone talks about artificial intelligence, and I must admit that when I took up my post at the Interior Ministry, I didn't feel entirely out of place… since I'm a medieval historian, and in terms of IT for our police force, I was more or less at that same level. We've moved from a Windows 95 logic to a 2025 version of the police force: better IT systems, more cameras, but above all networks of cameras connected to one another, real goldmines for our officers and investigators. That didn't take months or years. It took a few days, which actually shows one thing: nothing withstands political will when you decide to act quickly and well, and that is exactly our liberal identity. Doing things quickly and well. And I strive for that every day."
Education Minister Valérie Glatigny praised the MR's commitment. "In 2026, we will of course continue the reforms. We will draw inspiration from the tenacity of our president Georges-Louis Bouchez and the tireless work of David Leisterh, and I invite you, dear friends, to give a real standing ovation to these two people, who are above all role models for us."
MR president Georges-Louis Bouchez actually began his speech with a tribute to his friend David Leisterh. "He spared no effort: every evening in the local branches, every day in the neighbourhoods, pounding the pavement, handing out leaflets at metro exits, mobilising all of you. And beyond the personal bond that unites us, as party president I cannot let pass these petty spiteful comments that would have people believe that, in the end, he and I would be responsible for the situation. If people want to think that of me, so be it: whatever is said, it won't change my daily life. But do you really think that someone who has devoted more than 15 years of his life to this project, who has sacrificed everything to be by your side every day, to return to neighbourhoods that hadn't been visited in years, has not carried out his mission with the commitment we know him for? Today, I simply want to tell him, on behalf of all of us, that he gave everything, that he did his utmost, and that he performed a true act of courage: courage in politics is not making every compromise for a position, it is carrying a project forward and, when others lack the will to do so, accepting to sacrifice one's personal interest in the name of the collective interest."
Georges-Louis Bouchez naturally addressed the ongoing negotiations in Brussels. "Right now, the Guinness coalition is like Loch Ness. Everyone talks about it, no one has seen it. Today, Guinness is mainly the record for indignity, irresponsibility and dishonesty. We've come to this because there are people who believe this Region belongs to them, because officials who clearly lost the elections clung to their ministerial seats hoping that the passage of time would eventually work in their favour. We've come to this because they still haven't understood the urgency for Brussels. And that is precisely why liberals must remain standing, clear and determined, to give this Region back the direction, credibility and ambition it deserves."
And the MR president stressed everything wrong with this project: "The Guinness coalition is not a Belgian beer. They could at least have chosen a gueuze, when there are plenty of beers in Brussels without needing an old Irish one. But above all, Guinness is very dark, like the colour of the project taking shape: a LEZ imposed on each and every one of you but not on STIB buses, delivery workers, teachers and carers who have to pay while Good Move is reinforced, while there's talk of a tax to enter Brussels, and while they dream of locking up our capital instead of supporting it as the showcase, engine and jewel of our country. Neither making roads ever more expensive and difficult, nor attacking our fellow citizens' purchasing power."
But the MR is not giving up: "Our 20 MPs will regain control by tabling texts to at least postpone the LEZ to the same date as STIB buses, to review Good Move, and to lower registration fees in Brussels. Every week, they will force parties to take a stand in Parliament, so that it's finally over with saying one thing in the neighbourhoods and voting for another under the dome, over with pretending to defend purchasing power or workers while adding taxes and forcing men and women to change cars just to be able to do their job."
Security is also one of the major themes for the MR in 2026: "We will concretely enforce the polluter-pays, or rather vandal-pays, principle: it is no longer acceptable that, as it happens in Mr Laaouej's municipality, the destruction of bus shelters and public property is repaired with your taxes rather than with the money of those who did the damage. Because the punishment hits the wallet: when you get up every morning to work, to sweat, to hand your money to the State without benefiting from it, you don't forget that, and that is why vandal-pays must become a concrete and immediate reality."
The New Year's greetings tour continues on Friday 9 January in Luxembourg province.