“Malaise at Bpost: Minister Petra De Sutter Defends Herself against Responsibility”

The opposition questioned Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Public Enterprises Petra De Sutter (Groen) in the Chamber on Thursday evening about the scandals at Bpost. According to an internal investigation, the government company has charged the government too much for various services for years. De Sutter confirmed, after contacting Bpost, that additional investigations had yielded ‘indications of irregularities’ in three contracts: the state accounts (the so-called 679 accounts), the collection of fines from foreign traffic offenders and the collection and delivery of license plates. Earlier, irregularities in the concession of the newspaper distribution came to light.

‘This is not the problem of one file or one minister, and not even one legislature’, De Sutter said. She immediately makes it clear that she does not intend to pay for the malaise in the public company alone. The line minister is responsible for each of these contracts. Thus, the accounts of the state are the responsibility of the previous and current finance ministers. A public tender is currently underway for this ‘cashier function’ of Bpost after years of delay. The issue of license plates, on the other hand, falls under the authority of the current and former Ministers of Mobility, while the newspaper concession is the responsibility of the Minister of Economy.

“Now is the time to press ahead and get rid of potentially lopsided practices,” De Sutter said. The government decided on Wednesday to order an external audit to examine all contracts with the government.

Opposition member Michael Freilich (N-VA) submitted a motion asking for parliament to be more involved in the investigation. Josy Arens (Les Engagés) even directed a parliamentary committee of inquiry. Those emotional reactions were countered by a simple point of order – signed by all the majority parties – which led to the order of the day.