2023-09-17 18:47:00
On July 19, 2023, Vivaldi buried the first stage of the famous tax reform so desired by Vincent Van Peteghem and included in the government agreement. On Flemish radio, the Minister of Finance quickly declared himself “disappointed to see that some (he was targeting the MR in particular, Editor’s note) do not have the courage to make decisions in the interest of all. ” His grand plan for the legislature was collapsing. The Minister of Finance’s results were also very meager: an excise reform unpalatable for ordinary mortals, a greening of the company car fleet (without affecting the tax advantage) and a reform of copyright that was criticized. Since then, Deputy Prime Minister CD&V has recovered a little. With nearly 22 billion euros collected from Belgian savers, his plan to issue a state bond with a favorable tax regime hit the mark. The comeback of the native De Pinte surprised more than one. Including him, moreover,… But the success of the operation makes him an essential figure in the CD&V for the next elections.
Landed in 2020 by surprise in one of the most strategic positions in the government, Vincent Van Peteghem did not, at the time of his appointment, have a long national political career behind him. The man is above all an intellectual, with a doctorate in economics from the UGent. However, his Christian-democratic commitment owes nothing to chance. For 15 years, his father managed De Pinte, a town of 11,000 inhabitants on the outskirts of Ghent. Quite naturally, young Vincent then carefully followed all the meetings chaired by his father, until he himself presented himself for the municipal vote in 2012 on the same list, that of the CD&V. Directly, with the strength of his surname, he achieved the second score on the list, while he was in eleventh position.
Vivaldi’s untraceable tax reform is not regarding to be found…
On a mission to avenge his father
Anyone who already saw himself as first alderman alongside his father must nevertheless be disillusioned. The CD&V is pushed into opposition by a coalition of all the other lists. Faced with the mayor who pushed his father out, he cut his teeth as a leader of the opposition. “He is a friendly person, but he did not hesitate to hit hard during municipal councils, sometimes to the point of exaggeration,” confides a representative who was in the majority at the time. He made it his mission to reconquer the city, and I must say that he kept his word.” Six years later, indeed, the 2018 municipal elections mark the advent of Vincent Van Peteghem’s local career. With 2,400 preference votes and 41% of votes for his list, the “son of Martin Van Peteghem”, as some locals sometimes call him, takes over the mayorship and becomes mayor of De Pinte.
This strong impression made at the local level encouraged the party to offer him a more important destiny, by placing him on the federal lists in 2014. Two years later, in his capacity as second substitute, he became a deputy in the Chamber. He remained in the federal parliament for three years, where he positioned himself as one of the new figures of the CD&V. Driven by this recent experience, and his local popularity, in 2019 he became a member of the Flemish parliament. And this time, without being a substitute.
The good tax soldier
The period experienced by the CD&V following the 2019 elections is decisive for Vincent Van Peteghem. He is one of the “twelve apostles”, this think tank wanted by the Christian Democrats to learn the lessons of the electoral defeat. After the announcement of Wouter Beke’s departure from the Flemish government, he launched the race for party president in November. Without success. He took fourth place in the first round, leaving Joachim Coens and Sammy Mahdi to battle it out in the second. But each of these steps allows the native of Ghent to place his pawns and gain influence. On October 1, 2020, this undermining work finally paid off: he was appointed Deputy Prime Minister in the federal government, and received the Ministry of Finance. A prestigious position for this near-neophyte at the highest level.
Within the kern, “Van Pet”, as some other members of Vivaldi are nicknamed, often finds himself at the center of the game. “Since it is a government with socialists and liberals, we often end up with a compromise in the center, favorable to the CD&V line, notes Dave Sinardet, political scientist at the VUB. He gradually imposed his style. He is a pure Christian Democrat, probably even more so than his party president. He’s not someone who gives a rock’n’roll image, he’s more of a technician. It’s a little dull. And he’s not here to make big declarations.”
This other Deputy Prime Minister confirms. “He’s a nice guy, really, but he’s not the most talkative. He mostly repeats what his administration tells him. He is truly the good soldier of the taxman.” Rather renowned for his culture of compromise, like any good member of the CD&V, Vincent Van Peteghem is not really the one who gets noticed by angry outbursts or slamming doors. In the Flemish press, he is often presented as a “gray personality”. An image however far from the reality of the federal conclave, according to this other member of the kern. “He has a devastating sense of humor. He always has a good word to lighten the mood.”
“Family man”
As a negotiator, Vincent Van Peteghem has managed to gain ground over the years. “It’s true that nuance is important to him, but he was also able to be very firm on certain occasions. In the negotiations on support measures during the energy crisis, he was adamant regarding lowering VAT to 6%.” In his office, relatives confirm the Van Peteghem method: consult a lot, listen a lot, then decide and never change your mind too much. A little narrow-minded sometimes? It’s the characteristic of every politician, people around him respond.
When he needs to concentrate, Van Peteghem plays darts in the corridors of his office. He often takes the time to call his three children by video call, between two meetings. This is his “familieman” side, “good family man”, as those close to him say. He tries to show up often on weekends at De Pinte, where he remains president of the municipal council. The Vice-Prime himself admits not knowing very well what his future will look like following his time at the Ministry of Finance. The answer then comes from the mouth of his own party president, Sammy Mahdi. “Vincent will play a key role in the campaign. Everyone at CD&V knows what we owe them. And contrary to what some say, his track record is excellent. It’s not the success of state bonds that will change my mind.”
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