Belgium's pitiful politics

From the Economist Intelligence Unit ViewsWire The woeful state of Belgian politics Belgium has been plunged into yet another political crisis after the prime minister, Yves Leterme, offered his resignation on July 15th over a long-running dispute on regional autonomy. His five-party coalition, which comprises the Flemish and francophone Christian Democrats and Liberals and the francophone Socialists, has only been in government since late March. Prior to that Belgium had been without a stable government for nine months, following the inconclusive result of the June 2007 general election. Mr Leterme's decision to stand down is a tacit acknowledgement of his coalition's failure to reach a consensus on the future steps to implement devolution reforms ahead of a self-imposed deadline of July 15th. The date had been set soon... [read full story]