Paul Magnette says he is not afraid of an Arizona government collapse: “Better no government than a bad government”

Paul Magnette is not worried about the prospect of Belgium’s Arizona government falling. “We are not seeking the government’s collapse, but we are always ready,” the Socialist Party leader said after a party meeting in Gosselies.

If necessary, Magnette said, his party could produce a concise program within days and return to campaigning. His confidence comes as the federal coalition prepares a painful budget exercise against a backdrop of weak growth, giving the PS an opportunity to capitalize on public discontent.

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Better no government than a bad government.

Magnette presented what he called an indictment of the “ten failures of right-wing governments,” attacking the Arizona government’s economic results and what he described as “cacophony in terms of method and content” surrounding the coming budget negotiations.

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We are not seeking the government’s collapse, but we are always ready.

He also mocked MR leader Georges-Louis Bouchez for holding his political comeback event at Waterloo’s Lion mound, the site of Napoleon’s defeat. Magnette called the choice “very funny” and described it as “high-level involuntary humor.”

A confrontation is building over VAT. Prime Minister Bart De Wever is inclined to support a broad increase, while Bouchez rejects it outright. Magnette said the MR was repeating its familiar role of standing alone against everyone else, while arguing that the MR and PS both agree that VAT should not be increased.

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I found this choice very funny. Holding your comeback at the site of a defeat is high-level involuntary humor.