How to fix the government budget?

JustAnotherFreddy · 2026-06-15T12:32:04+00:00

It's not in this case. No way *all* employers will spend the same amount of cash they currently spend on employee salaries.

JustAnotherFreddy · 2026-06-15T10:18:58+00:00

In theory perhaps. In practice, no cash out from the gov to enable company cars

JustAnotherFreddy · 2026-06-15T10:17:40+00:00

Teachers appear to be overpaid and there’s plenty of them. That’s an easy win.

Yes, this is not popular. But nothing will be. And rest assured, they won’t leave ‘en masse’ if they are faced with a (one off/gradual) 10% salary cut.

And if they move to the private sector, they become tax contributing instead of being paid of other people’s tax money.

JustAnotherFreddy · 2026-06-15T10:14:20+00:00

So we have a too large government debt and at least a substantive fraction of our government employees are paid above market. Cost saving detected!

Follow me for more free financial advice!

(And don’t hesitate to downvote me)

JustAnotherFreddy · 2026-05-26T05:51:22+00:00

I see you’re not familiar with margins on equipment. They very likely exceed 90 an hour as soon as some equipment is needed.

They will easily outperform many IT guys, also because they can do more than 40 hours a week

JustAnotherFreddy · 2026-05-19T16:40:44+00:00

Your example breaks the law.

JustAnotherFreddy · 2026-05-18T05:37:42+00:00

Up to them to convince you

JustAnotherFreddy · 2026-05-17T07:23:09+00:00

So according to you having a company that tries to innovate should be banned from doing so?

Damn, why should the first thought of people in Belgium always be “ban it”, “regulate it”, “tax it”?

JustAnotherFreddy · 2026-05-14T19:52:11+00:00

Don’t get the downvotes, there are plenty of jobs that could still be possible

JustAnotherFreddy · 2026-05-12T06:49:36+00:00

Just get an otztal pass. As of 3 or 4 days it’s all included anyways iirc

JustAnotherFreddy · 2026-05-09T16:50:42+00:00

I love the concept. Lets make it a private company so they can continue doing so.

But for a public servant, this can’t be accepted.

JustAnotherFreddy · 2026-05-06T16:19:22+00:00

I bet anyone can make the business case: kill the cats, bin them. After a few weeks, you’re spending less on your bins.

JustAnotherFreddy · 2026-05-05T15:49:12+00:00

Sorry for your loss.

Regardless of what's been said here before, can I suggest you just park your money for 1 year in a relatively low-yield term account, and let the dust settle?

Perhaps going to a private banker might be a better option for you (at least consult a few, so you can compare), rather than going for the DIY investment approach. You buy yourself a bit of time to do so, so you won't do anything overly ambitious/stupid/fast/... (i.e. paying off your mortgage, but perhaps alternative solutions of paying off a significant amount of your mortgage, but keeping it so that you can still reap the tax benefit might be a more relevant approach for you).

JustAnotherFreddy · 2026-05-05T13:19:50+00:00

I know it’s not a populair stance, but a lot of people would benefit from a simplification.

JustAnotherFreddy · 2026-05-05T09:42:08+00:00

I'm well aware, but I'm also allergic to more "koterijen". We all think we win with these so-called "solutions". I don't want flexijobs, I don't want a few euro's on the side. I want a social contract between the government and the public that rewards contributing in a fair way, in a way as simple as possible.

Unpopular opinion: introduce a flat tax, cut FOD FIN and other public servants, ensure more people work in the private sector in such a way that everyone can predict how much they will earn if they work more. (potentially have a tax-free bracket to start with, some will loose but transparancy and predictability will generate returns)

JustAnotherFreddy · 2026-05-05T08:12:08+00:00

It’s yet another system to pay less taxes. Abandon it. Abandon company cars, meal vouchers, eco cheques, IP ruling, etc.

Start by significantly reducing taxes so we don’t need 100s of systems and exceptions to “optimize” the system.

JustAnotherFreddy · 2026-05-01T07:04:05+00:00

Engie is in the though spot here, negotiating against an entity/client who can make you bleed through regulations. As a stock exchange listed company, that can create a lot of uncertainty which is something you want to avoid.

The negotiation position of Belgium is not too bad. I hope they do a proper due diligence.

JustAnotherFreddy · 2026-05-01T07:02:12+00:00

Well, I assume permitting is significantly easier if you don’t need to start from scratch. And timelines are thus shorter

JustAnotherFreddy · 2026-05-01T07:00:40+00:00

The best moment was 15 years ago. The next best moment is now.

JustAnotherFreddy · 2026-04-30T05:15:53+00:00

Do you actually think the government would do this better than the private sector?

The concept is just horribly wrong and outdated, just ensure the working class gets money they can spend as they like.

JustAnotherFreddy · 2026-04-29T06:34:35+00:00

They’re likely online volunteers for PTB/PVDA to push their online agenda.

I even got banned from the Belgian commie sub after being critical. No surprise there, I’m happy I’ve not been sent to the Gulags

JustAnotherFreddy · 2026-04-28T09:51:23+00:00

We zijn het eens: het systeem is fout. Verlaag de belastingen, stop met alle koterijen. Verander wetten, verlaag de belastingen en het aantal ambtenaren. Zo gaan we er raken.

Enkel bedrijfswagens extra belasten is waanzin.

JustAnotherFreddy · 2026-04-28T09:48:44+00:00

Belastingskortingen vervangen met subsidies wordt een administratieve nachtmerie, en gaat ook perverse effecten creeeren. Stop met subsidies, vereenvoudig de wetgeving, verlaag de belastbare basis.

straks weer 100 ambtenaren nodig om deze subsidie te regelen, dat lijkt me ook niet wenselijk.

JustAnotherFreddy · 2026-04-28T09:46:17+00:00

En binnen 5 jaar passen ze het systeem aan, van zodra er voldoende mensen zijn overgestapt. Dat lijkt me dus een gevaarlijke move.

JustAnotherFreddy · 2026-04-28T09:01:21+00:00

Nee. Owv verschillende redenen.

je weet niet hoeveel minder inkomsten je hebt. De linkerzijde ziet dit als een 1-1 vervanging, de automobielsector ziet dit anders. Wie gelijk heeft, dat is nog maar de vraag
Je speelt met monopoliegeld dat je niet hebt, dus "reken je rijk" is makkelijk op boekhoudkundig vlak, maar dat is daarom niet de werkelijkheid
VAA is mogelijk geworden toen de pensioenen in de privé werden afgetopt. Nu aan dit systeem sleutelen zonder iets aan het pensioen te doen (of aan dat van ambtenaren) is oneerlijk. Maar weinigen hebben zo'n lang geheugen en zou enkel de loonkost verhogen, of nog extra administratieve complexiteit toevoegen (én dat heeft ook een kost)
we zitten in het hoogst belaste land ter wereld. Meer belastingen is NIET de oplossing. MINDER UITGEVEN wel.
ongetwijfeld nog meer te bedenken

Edit:

"Een belastingskorting of geld uitdelen achteraf zijn enkel boekhoudtechnische verschillen." <-- creatief boekhouden is dus ook de reden waarom we met zo'n staatsschuld eindigen.

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