Belgian Politics without Ministerial Cabinets? On the Possibilities and Limitations of a New Political Culture

In: Acta politica: AP ; international journal of political science ; official journal of the Dutch Political Science Association (Nederlandse Kring voor Wetenschap der Politiek), Volume 36, Issue 2, p. 180-205

Abstract

In early 2000, a start was made with a sweeping reform of the federal political & administrative structures & procedures in Belgium. One very important element of these reform plans was to dramatically reduce the size of ministers' personal staff. It appears that the government even intends to abolish the "almighty" ministerial cabinets. In this article, we consider the possibilities & difficulties associated with the likely abolition of ministerial cabinets in Belgium. First, we deal with the occurrence & the shape of ministerial staffs in other countries. Then, we explore why Belgium's ministerial cabinets have come under such heavy fire. Finally, we try to demonstrate that ministerial cabinets do not only display a whole array of dysfunctions, but that they also fulfill a crucial, functional role in the Belgian policy-making process. This raises the question: who or what will take over their function? If their tasks are not assumed by other institutions or bodies, the abolition of the ministerial cabinets will not generate better governance, but quite the opposite. 1 Figure, 77 References. Adapted from the source document.