BGM Digest — Week 31 (27 July — 2 August 2026)

State Council Annuls Licenses for Shared Scooters and Bikes

On Wednesday, 29 July 2026, the State Council annulled the valid licenses for e-scooters and shared bikes in free-floating mode in Brussels, following an appeal by Lime, an operator excluded from the market during the 2023 license allocation. Brussels Mobility immediately requested Dott, Bolt, and VOI to remove their devices from public space by 1 September 2026 at the latest. This judicial decision advances the ban on e-scooters — originally set for 1 January 2027 by the government — by four months. For shared bikes, which the government intended to preserve, a new regulatory framework must be developed, with no announced timeline. The Villo! concession is not affected by the ruling.

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Unemployment Benefits Fall Sharply, But No Return to Employment

In June 2026, Brussels recorded 35,118 fully unemployed benefit recipients, a decline of 43.5% year-over-year — the steepest of all three regions. However, this reduction does not reflect a return to employment: the administrative unemployment rate calculated by Actiris rose by 0.31 percentage points to 14.6%. More concerning, 31,850 Brussels job seekers — 34% of the total — are now registered with a CPAS (public social action center). This represents a rise of over 70% in a single year. The observed decline results from exhausted entitlements, not labor market integration. Administrative costs are shifting from federal unemployment insurance to CPAS budgets, funded by municipalities and the Cocom.

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Opaque Appointment in Rabat Sparks Government Tension

On 23 July, Brussels' council of ministers designated a government representative to lead hub.brussels' economic and commercial office in Rabat from 1 September 2026. The appointee is the chief of staff of a Brussels minister. According to multiple media sources, this designation was made on the minister-president's proposal, bypassing the selection procedure required for economic attachés at hub.brussels, for a salary between €115,000 and €150,000 gross per year. An opposition group contests the opaque procedure and demands full publication of the decree. No official government communication accompanied this decision.

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Doubling of Cleanliness Fines in Brussels-City

The doubling of cleanliness fines in Brussels-City came into effect on 1 August 2026: €200 for bins left out outside authorized hours (previously €100), €400 for non-compliant bags (previously €150), €250 per day for abandoned shopping carts. Between 1 January and 31 July 2026, the City had already issued 5,403 fines, including 3,244 for illegal dumping, compared to 7,731 for all of 2025. The Cleanliness alderman estimates annual waste treatment costs at €2 million. On the same day, the regional minister communicated 2025 collection volumes: 74,169 m³ across the Region, with a tenfold disparity between Schaerbeek (10,425 m³) and Sint-Josse (511 m³).

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Firefighters' Strike Suspended Following Agreement

Brussels firefighters' strike has been suspended since 27 July 2026, following unanimous approval of an agreement concluded two days earlier with the regional government. The strike, which began on 21 July, formally ended on 27 July. However, the strike notice remains in effect: unions have until end of September to verify that commitments are met. The agreement provides for 132 new recruits by end-2027 and a federal budget of €10 million, of which over €8 million for operational personnel and the emergency call center 112. If commitments are not fulfilled, strike action will resume.

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