Belgium’s future unsure as prime minister resigns

BELGIUM’S future hung in the balance last night as King Albert II considered whether to let his prime minister, Yves Leterme, resign over his failure to bridge the gulf between the country’s two linguistic communities.

The king, informed by Leterme of his decision, was “weighing” the move, the palace said, and met political leaders from both sides of the political divide and parliamentary officials.

After his shock move, Leterme said: “It appears that the communities’ conflicting visions of how to give a new equilibrium to our state have become incompatible.”

But he added that “state reform remains essential”, implying that with or without him at the head of government, the linguistic community issue would continue to haunt Belgium.

It is the third time the Flemish conservative has failed to bridge the deep divisions between Belgium’s Flemish and French-speaking communities over whether, and how, to devolve federal powers to them.

Leterme had set himself the deadline of July 15 to reconcile the parties from Flanders and Wallonia over radical reforms to the federal state.

Flanders, Belgium’s Dutch-speaking northern half, craves more regional powers to reflect its prosperity. It also resents subsidising the less affluent, French-speaking Wallonia region to its south.