Strong criticism from the opposition to the Flemish government’s climate plan

The Flemish government reached a climate agreement on Thursday evening. From 2029, the sale of new passenger cars and vans with combustion engines will be banned and from 2023 there will be a renovation obligation for those who buy an energy-consuming home.

READ ALSO. Flemish government reaches agreement on climate plan: with these measures, the government wants to drastically reduce emissions

According to Groen, that plan is insufficient to contain the climate crisis. “Difficult choices are passed on to citizens, such as the compulsory renovation of old homes, but the Flemish government does not dare to make clear choices themselves, such as the smart kilometer charge,” says Flemish party leader Björn Rzoska.

The Flemish government will limit its emissions to 40 percent, while Europe asks at least 47 percent, Groen notes. “The measures that are now on the table show that ordinary Flemish people in particular will be able to pay for the climate policy of the Flemish government. Livestock will not be restricted, industry and major polluters will not be affected. As long as taboos remain, we will never move forward.”

Ahead: “Government is unwilling”

“The climate agreement transfers the real efforts to ordinary Flemish people. The Flemish government does not even provide a framework to make all of this possible.” That is what Bruno Tobback of Vooruit says in response to the agreement of Thursday evening.

“This is proof that the government is unwilling to fundamentally move in a different, sustainable direction,” said Tobback. “It took the Flemish ministers a whole week at the table to move a few commas in their existing, inadequate plans. If you can’t decide on any structural intervention after sitting around the table for so long, it’s hard to speak of management.”

PVDA: “Pest policy”

Opposition party PVDA calls the new climate plan of the Flemish government a bullying policy. “Make and prohibit for ordinary people, open the subsidy tap to the large company and in the meantime avoid any responsibility yourself.”

“Much more ambition is needed in Flemish climate policy, but with these plans the government is going completely in the wrong direction,” says Flemish PvdA party leader Jos D’Haese. “While the government itself is evading its responsibility, it is shifting the bill entirely to the citizen. That elitist climate policy is not only antisocial, but also very inefficient.”

He wonders how an ordinary citizen can meet the new requirements for buildings. “Certainly when they have to replace their car with a very expensive electric one in the meantime? I wonder what world the ministers who take such measures actually live in.”

The government could have taken a whole host of measures instead, such as investing in better public transport. “Or ambitious measures to support families with renovations, for example by prepaying the costs and paying them off via the reduced energy bill. Working on public renewable energy. And binding standards for the major polluters. These are all measures that have a major impact on our emissions and help people move forward instead of costing them,” concludes D’Haese.

Vlaams Belang: “Asocial and hardly any climate impact”

Vlaams Belang is also critical of the climate plan. According to the party, “the new obligations are diametrically opposed to the idea of ​​a social transition and, moreover, there will be hardly any impact on the climate”.

Among other things, there is criticism of the renovation obligation for those who buy an energy-hungry home from 2023. “It is already extremely difficult for young families looking for an affordable home to find one,” says Flemish MP Adeline Blancquaert. “This renovation commitment will only make the dream of owning their own home even more unattainable for those families.”

The mandatory heat pump is also a thorn in the side of the party. “It is unacceptable to us that the Flemings have to use a heat pump while the government keeps the electricity price artificially high,” says Sam Van Rooy. The Flemish MP is also skeptical about the impact the measure would have on greenhouse gas emissions. “Federally, our clean electricity from nuclear energy is being replaced by electricity generated in subsidized and polluting gas plants. So there are a lot of question marks about the net impact of the electrification obligations.”

There is still criticism of the mandatory electrification by 2029. “It is not certain that an electric car will cost as much as a similar model with a classic combustion engine by then,” says Flemish MP Bart Claes. “This is gambling on the citizen’s hood and stands in stark contrast to a social policy. Moreover, the charging infrastructure is inadequate and this plan will require substantial investments in our weak grid. It remains to be seen how much that will cost and whether it can be done in time.”

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