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Brussels Governance Monitor

Frequently asked questions

Understanding Brussels governance: sourced questions and answers

What is the Brussels Governance Monitor?
BGM is an independent tool that documents the governance of the Brussels-Capital Region. It tracks government commitments, the status of key dossiers, budgets, and public data. Every piece of information is sourced, dated, and assigned a confidence level. BGM is hosted by Advice That SRL and is not affiliated with any political party.
Does Brussels have a government?
Yes. After 613 days of caretaker government, a coalition agreement was reached on 13 February 2026 between seven parties (MR, PS, Les Engagés, Groen, Open VLD, Vooruit, CD&V). The Regional Policy Declaration was presented to parliament on 23 February 2026. BGM now tracks the implementation of these commitments.
What does BGM track now that the government is formed?
BGM documents the commitments of the Regional Policy Declaration, key dossiers (Metro 3, LEZ, social housing, bankruptcies, etc.), budgets, and government decisions. Each domain has an updated card with official sources, metrics, and data confidence levels.
What are BGM's sources?
All our data comes from official sources (Court of Auditors, Brussels parliament, regional administrations) or reliable secondary sources (press, academic studies). Every figure is accompanied by its source and confidence level. Everything is available on the Data page.
Is BGM affiliated with a political party?
No. Brussels Governance Monitor is an independent project hosted by Advice That SRL. It is not funded or supported by any political party, trade union, or interest group. The source code is publicly available to ensure full transparency. All rights reserved.
How can I contribute?
You can report an error, propose a correction, or submit new sources via our GitHub repository. The source code is open and contributions are welcome. You can also subscribe to email alerts to follow the evolution of the situation.
Why is Brussels so complex?
Brussels is simultaneously a Region, the capital of Belgium, the seat of the EU, and a city of 19 autonomous municipalities. Six different governments exercise competences there (federal, regional, COCOM, COCOF, VGC, municipal). Forming a regional government requires a double linguistic majority (FR + NL), which complicates coalition-building. This institutional architecture, unique in the world, is the result of historical compromises between linguistic communities.

The 613-day crisis (2024-2026)

Why did Brussels go 613 days without a government?
After the regional elections of 9 June 2024, Brussels political parties failed to form a majority coalition. The institutional structure, which requires majorities in both linguistic groups, complicated the process. Six attempts failed before a seven-party agreement was reached on 13 February 2026.
What did 'caretaker government' mean during that period?
The outgoing government could only manage day-to-day matters and continue existing commitments. It could not launch new policies, vote a new budget, or make strategic decisions. The budget was managed through provisional twelfths: each month, one twelfth of the previous budget was rolled over.
What impact did the crisis have on residents?
Infrastructure projects were frozen (Metro 3, tunnel renovations), housing policies were suspended (Housing Fund, rental guarantee), the job market suffered from inaction (ONEM exclusions), and the regional budget lost real value due to inflation without possible adjustment. The new government inherited a significant backlog to address.
What are provisional twelfths?
An emergency budget mechanism that rolls over one twelfth of the last approved budget each month. This allows salaries and current expenses to be paid but prevents any new investment and any adjustment to inflation or changing needs. This mechanism was in effect throughout the entire period without a government (June 2024 — February 2026).
Has this happened before in Belgium?
At the federal level, yes. Belgium held the world record for the longest period without a government: 541 days between 2010 and 2011. At the Brussels regional level, the 613-day crisis (2024-2026) was unprecedented in both duration and complexity.
Who unblocked the situation?
The President of the Brussels Parliament steered the formation process and designated informateurs, formateurs, and facilitators (unlike at the federal level, the King plays no role in the formation of the regional government). After six attempts, a seven-party agreement was reached in February 2026.