Belgium prime minister resigns amid growing political crisis

Charles Michel, Belgium’s prime minister, has resigned following a failed attempt to win parliamentary backing for his minority administration, deepening the country’s political crisis.

Mr Michel announced his resignation following a decision by opposition parties to table a no-confidence motion in his government. Rather than wait for the vote later this week, Mr Michel announced that he would “immediately” tender his resignation to the king.

The move confirmed the failure of Mr Michel’s attempts to soldier on as prime minister after the Flemish nationalist N-VA party quit his government earlier this month over its opposition to a UN migration pact.

The royal palace said on Tuesday night that king would consult with party leaders on Wednesday before taking a decision on how to proceed. Options include heading straight for elections or trying to assemble a caretaker government that could see the country through the coming months.

Mr Michel had hoped to carry on as leader of a minority administration of liberals and conservatives but stoked the ire of opposition parties by ruling out the idea of seeking a confidence vote for his rejigged administration.

His resignation increases the likelihood of early elections, with the country already set to go to the polls in May.

I have understood that my appeal has failed to convince. I take the decision to resign and my intention is to go to the king immediately

Mr Michel had appealed for a “coalition of good will” in parliament to see his government through to the May vote, but a day of parliamentary debate in Brussels led him to conclude this was impossible.

“I have understood that my appeal has failed to convince,” he said. “I have to respect and take note of this situation. I take the decision to resign and my intention is to go to the king immediately.”

Mr Michel’s decision marks the bitter end of a government that represented a political experiment for the linguistically divided country.

Breaking with the grand-coalition governments of the recent past, Mr Michel in 2014 teamed up with the N-VA, the most popular party in Dutch-speaking Flanders but one committed to the eventual break-up of Belgium.

The move was heavily criticised by opposition parties not least because it meant that Mr Michel’s liberal MR party would be the only French-speaking force in government.

Mr Michel argued that the move was a bold step that would avoid the political paralysis that had followed previous elections, in 2010. Then the country was left without a federal government for 541 days, a world record.

But the deal went sour after the N-VA stiffened its opposition to a UN compact on migration that Mr Michel was determined to sign, echoing antipathy to the international accord in rightwing parties elsewhere in the EU.

While the pact is not legally binding, opponents see its provisions in making legal migration easier, providing services to migrants and toughening laws against anti-migrant hate crimes as a potential catalyst for changes to national laws. The European Commission and others insist this is not the case.

Opposition parties railed against Mr Michel’s refusal to seek a formal confidence vote and expressed fears about the continued influence of the N-VA over his government given its strength in parliament. It also became clear that the administration would struggle to pass a budget.

Ahmed Laaouej, leader of the Francophone socialist party in parliament, accused Mr Michel of leading the country to “an impasse”, with “a minority government incapable of taking decisions.”

“The N-VA has turned you into a puppet,” he said.