You know change is happening when Belgium backs reform.
Lessons from the Economics Department of University of Pyongyang
Belgium is not only the home of the EU. It is, as its residents know, one of the most heavily taxed countries in the world. It has the hits its middle class harder and earlier than any country in Europe.
Flanders
Kris Peeters is the sort of acting Prime Minister of Flanders, the rich part of Belgium, who seems to spend a lot of time to persuade Ford not to close its loss making plant down. His skills of persuasion and huge grants – or as they should should be called gifts from the taxpayers to a small group of workers and Ford shareholders – keeps the plant going, when it is not on strike.
But, Flanders, and the region where Mr Peeters is from, is the home of Belgium’s loss making fishing industry. The industry, which a large part is owned by Dutch interests, has always seemed to be reluctant to be dragged into the 21st Century. They are not big fans of agreeing to a ban on the discarding of fish at fish. And, for a long time, what the Belgium fishermen said was faithfully repeated by the Flemish/Belgium government.
Change Is Coming
But, even change happens in Belgium. Flanders Today, a very good english language magazine, and not an ultra nationalist publication, this weeks reported that even Belgium has come to to backing a ban on discards:
Flanders Today reports:
“Minister-president Kris Peeters, whose portfolio also includes agriculture, said he recognised that the new landing requirement presented the industry with “an exceptionally difficult challenge”. However, the new policy was, he said, a realistic way to achieve the desired goal without losing sight of the principle of conservation.”