Bart De Wever submits government resignation after 2027 budget talks fail

Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever submitted his government's resignation to King Philippe on Monday, after the governing coalition parties failed to reach an agreement on the 2027 federal budget.

Reuters, citing Belgian media, said De Wever asked to tender his government's resignation during his meeting with King Philippe against the backdrop of the breakdown of talks over a package of financial measures estimated at around ten billion euros.

The royal palace announced that the king decided to keep the resignation under consideration and not to accept it immediately, and that he will begin consultations with leaders of the coalition parties on Tuesday in an attempt to find a way out of the political crisis resulting from the failed budget negotiations.

The collapse of the negotiations was due to disagreements over how to distribute the burden of reducing the deficit, notably over raising taxes on high‑income earners and cutting public spending, with disputes concentrated on items related to health expenditures.

The Belgian government is made up of a coalition of five parties that differ in their positions on the measures required to rein in public finances, which prevented reaching a compromise that would have the unanimous support of coalition partners.