Wakizashi the Bolshevik
25th October 2009, 17:49
It's official now: Belgium is ruled by the energy company of Electrabel. They are the ones who have the real power, and are actually in charge.
Electrabel, the Belgium arm of the French mega-company Gas de France-Suez, has declared it will not pay any tax in 2009, and are planning to pay nothing either in 2010. For the year of 2011 it could be possible they will pay their taxes again, but they can't be sure about that untill "after negotiations with the government".
Belgian Prime Minister Herman Van Rompuy has travelled to Paris a few days ago for a top meeting with GDF-Suez. There, the CEO's have simply refused to pay taxes, and Van Rompuy has left empty-handed, not willing to protest or take action of any kind against Electrabel.
Electrabel owns about 90% of the Belgian energy market, and produces its energy with the most old-fashioned and polluting plants there are: most of the electricity actually comes from coal burning, most of the rest is from old-fashioned nuclear power plants.
This refusal to pay taxes comes after Electrabel forced the Belgian goverment to keep the nuclear power plants open for at least another 10 years. The government has promised the People of Belgium that the nuclear plants would start to close around 2009, and the last one gone by 2015. But now they have, under the pressure of the top managers of Electrabel, declared these plants will remain open at least uanother ten years.
The oldest power plants have been built in Belgium to operate for 20 years. They were contructed 30 years ago! Thus, they are already operating 10 years longer then they should, and now they will remain open for at least another 10 years, thus operating for 40 years.
All this while Belgium has a deficit of 25 billion euros, which the government wants to "solve" by decreasing expediture for social services, healthcare and education. We, the People of Belgium, pay 40% of our wage as tax to the state, but Electrabel, a company that gains billions every single year, will pay a tax of 0%!!!
It is clear who rules Belgium. Not the government. Not the Prime Minister.
The real master of Belgium is GDF-Suez.
Electrabel, the Belgium arm of the French mega-company Gas de France-Suez, has declared it will not pay any tax in 2009, and are planning to pay nothing either in 2010. For the year of 2011 it could be possible they will pay their taxes again, but they can't be sure about that untill "after negotiations with the government".
Belgian Prime Minister Herman Van Rompuy has travelled to Paris a few days ago for a top meeting with GDF-Suez. There, the CEO's have simply refused to pay taxes, and Van Rompuy has left empty-handed, not willing to protest or take action of any kind against Electrabel.
Electrabel owns about 90% of the Belgian energy market, and produces its energy with the most old-fashioned and polluting plants there are: most of the electricity actually comes from coal burning, most of the rest is from old-fashioned nuclear power plants.
This refusal to pay taxes comes after Electrabel forced the Belgian goverment to keep the nuclear power plants open for at least another 10 years. The government has promised the People of Belgium that the nuclear plants would start to close around 2009, and the last one gone by 2015. But now they have, under the pressure of the top managers of Electrabel, declared these plants will remain open at least uanother ten years.
The oldest power plants have been built in Belgium to operate for 20 years. They were contructed 30 years ago! Thus, they are already operating 10 years longer then they should, and now they will remain open for at least another 10 years, thus operating for 40 years.
All this while Belgium has a deficit of 25 billion euros, which the government wants to "solve" by decreasing expediture for social services, healthcare and education. We, the People of Belgium, pay 40% of our wage as tax to the state, but Electrabel, a company that gains billions every single year, will pay a tax of 0%!!!
It is clear who rules Belgium. Not the government. Not the Prime Minister.
The real master of Belgium is GDF-Suez.