The ING bank, which was the last one willing to help the Walloon region and lend it money to the municipalities, it no longer wants to do for certain big cities because they are in such bad shape financially. David Clarinval, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Agriculture and Mayor of Bièvre, explains to us the possible consequences for the region of Wallonia. He is Martin Buxant’s guest at 7:50 on bel RTL Matin.
This is information revealed on Saturday by the newspaper l’Écho. ING, the only bank to respond to the Walloon region’s call for support for the Oxygen plan, refused to finance seven Walloon towns in difficulty. The bank actually set its conditions and refused to finance certain cities. In addition to Liège and Charleroi, already excluded from ING funding in 2023, Mons, Ath, Namur, La Louvière and Verviers have been added to the list.
“This will have to be handled by the Walloon government, but I know that under the previous legislature last year there had already been discussions with the Belfius bank“, recalls David Clarinval.”The wish was to create an Oxygen Plan on the condition that the municipalities take the initiative for good governance and good financial management. Several of these have obviously not followed the decided plans.“, he adds.
Puts under Crac
But what should happen to municipalities in financial difficulties? Is bankruptcy an option? For the Deputy Prime Minister, bankruptcy is not an option. But another system ensures that the municipalities manage their finances better. “UA municipality is placed under Crac, under supervision, it is no longer completely independent in the decisions it can make“, he explains. This is the case for around 60 municipalities in Wallonia.
Crac is the regional help center for municipalities. The organization had planned to raise 350 million euros from banks in 2024. Only ING responded to the market, but for a total of 82 million. The bank has set its conditions and refused to finance certain cities.”Many municipalities in Wallonia are under Crac, and must then put management plans in place to restore finances“, emphasizes David Clarinval.
The Walloon region must now find 268 million euros to implement its planned budget. The minister responsible for local authorities, François Desquesnes, indicates in L’Écho that he is discreetly working towards a solution and also calls for solidarity.from the federal“, especially in relation to the cost of CPAS and pension funding.