Belgian administration too expensive

14 May 2007

BRUSSELS – Belgium spends more on average than the rest of Europe when it comes to education, health care and general administration.

The extra spending on education does result in top level educational achievements however in Flanders, so that extra expenditure is justified. Far less is achieved in Francophone education, according to the initial results of a study by the National Bank (NB).

NB director Norbert De Batselier presented these results last Friday at a conference for the managers within the Flemish government.

Expenditure on general administration – including ministries like the finance ministry – is higher than in most European countries, and the results are below average.

The results for health care however are above average. So the spending level can certainly be justified in that area, though improvement is possible. The expenditure on safety (police and justice) are above average but results are not.

The OECD also has prepared a study on the efficiency of the Belgian governments which indicates that these governments employ more staff than average. The announcement of the OECD report has been postponed until after the elections.

Subject: Belgian news