Executive summary
Assessment and recommendations
Chapter 1. Bringing public finances to a sustainable path
-The recovery is gathering pace, but will be insufficient to restore fiscal sustainability
-High levels of public debt boost the need for fiscal consolidation
-Reform of social security is the key to controlling ageing-related cost increases
-Fiscal federalism reform should facilitate consolidation
-An internal stability pact would improve the burden-sharing of fiscal targets
-Annex 1.A1. Progress in structural reform
-Annex 1.A2. Scenarios for public finances
-Annex 1.A3. The Belgian social security system
Chapter 2. Enhance the inclusiveness of the labour market
-The labour market performed relatively well during the crisis, but structural problems remain
-The anti-crisis labour measures should be scaled back as the economy recovers
-The government should focus on making the labour market more inclusive
-There are still large underutilised sources of labour
-Annex 2.A1. The seasonal pattern in the reduced working time programme
Chapter 3. Greener growth in the Belgian federation
-The greenhouse gas emission targets are becoming increasingly challenging
-The high energy intensity of the economy leads to a large amount of emissions
-Polluters must face the marginal cost of damages to ensure cost-efficient abatement
-Improvements in the area of water quality are visible, but suffer from a large backlog
-Environmental tools and policies should be co-ordinated and realigned
-Bibliography
-Annex 3.A1. Price elasticities of fuel demand
Glossary