2023-11-26 07:46:09
The sale of vapes or electronic cigarettes to minors is prohibited, but many young people are addicted to e-cigarettes. This is therefore a major concern for the Minister of Public Health, Frank Vandenbroucke (Vooruit), who is aiming for a tobacco-free generation, reports the VRT.
The minister therefore developed an anti-tobacco plan including numerous measures to discourage smoking and vaping. One of these measures is an excise on e-liquids. What is new is that the amount is known: 15 euro cents per milliliter, reports the Newspaper. The information also appears in a publication from the FPS Finances. This tax applies to “standard” liquids used in electronic cigarettes, but also to flavorings and nicotine boosters. This is therefore a significant price increase for users.
Disposable electronic cigarettes will also be more expensive due to this measure. But if it were up to Vandenbroucke, they would even be completely banned. The minister is working on a ban on disposable electronic cigarettes which should come into force in early 2025.
The price of regular cigarettes will also increase in January. Next year, a pack of cigarettes will cost on average 2 euros more than today.
Leave lost due to illness
From January 1, 2024, it will be possible to recover days of leave lost due to illness.
The European Court of Justice ruled in 2012 that a worker who fell ill during his leave might recover it later. Belgium had not yet complied with this case law, which meant that these days of leave were in some sense wasted. At the end of last year, the social partners agreed on an opinion which aims to resolve this problem. The Council of Ministers then validated a preliminary draft law carried by the Minister of Labor Pierre-Yves Dermagne.
Concretely, sick days that occur during vacation can no longer be counted as annual leave. The same goes for any accident that might occur during the worker’s annual vacation.
A worker who falls ill or is the victim of an accident must quickly contact his employer, provide him with a medical certificate and, if he is not at home, notify him of his place of residence. However, the holidays will not be automatically extended. Recovery of lost days may take place at a later date.
Voo increases its prices
The telecommunications company Voo will increase some of its prices from January 1, 2024, according to information from Litter. These increases do not affect all services uniformly. They are mainly linked to the increase in digital television, landline telephony and the Giga Max Internet product which has made connection speeds super fast.
“Voo has undertaken significant investments in its network in order to make ultra-fast Internet accessible to all of its customers,” explains spokesperson Marie-Pierre Dinsart to Litter.
Not all products are impacted: the “Net Super Relax” internet connection has not increased, just like the Zuny offer and the TV Light offer.
Meal vouchers
From January 1, 2024, members of staff of the federal public administration will benefit from a nominative electronic meal voucher per day worked, the nominal value of which is set at 6 euros.
However, cost-saving measures are being taken at the same time: repeal of the fixed daily allowance for living expenses and rationalization of company restaurants.
A pre-agreement was concluded with the unions in June 2022. It provided for both a salary increase and meal vouchers from the end of 2022. During the budget negotiations in October 2022, the government, however, decided to postpone the measure in spring 2024, to the great dismay of the unions. Ultimately, the date of January 1, 2024 was chosen.
Per civil servant, the measure represents some 1,000 euros net per year.
Energy certificate in Flanders
Any apartment building in Flanders must have an energy performance certificate (EPC, equivalent of the PEB in Wallonia and Brussels) for its common areas from January 1, 2024. Until now, the obligation only applies to buildings the most imposing. From January 1, it will be extended to buildings that house fewer than four housing units.
“We note that only around forty EPCs have been drawn up for common areas while we estimate that 120,000 apartment buildings are subject to this obligation,” says the spokesperson for the Flemish Energy and Climate Agency. (Veka), Lotte Ringoot. “A lot of apartment buildings therefore still need to have an EPC drawn up for their common areas. »
The EPC of the common areas of an apartment building informs owners regarding the energy savings achieved by the common areas of the building. These can be, for example, the roof, the exterior walls or even the collective heating installation. The result of their EPC can influence the quality of the EPC and the energy label (from A to F) of each individual apartment.
By not having within the allotted time an EPC valid for the common areas, the owner or the association of co-owners risks an administrative fine of 500 to 5,000 euros depending on the number of units present within each construction. Paying the fine does not exempt you from the obligation to have the appropriate EPC.
bpost increases its prices
From January 1, 2024, bpost will adapt the prices of its postage stamps and parcels, in order to partly compensate for the increase in costs linked to inflation and falling mail volumes.
Bpost has decided to impose a surcharge of one euro per parcel on all customers sending a parcel during the end-of-year peak period, i.e. between Black Friday (November 24) and Christmas Day (December 25). ), the group said in a press release on Friday.
The postal company justifies this surcharge by indicating that it is compensating for the excess costs generated during this traditionally very active period for the company, but also hopes to encourage in this way the spreading of demand outside of the end-of-year peak.
The group also announced the adaptation of the prices of its postage stamps and parcels from January 1, 2024. The Non Prior postage stamp, purchased individually, will increase from 1.39 euros to 1.46 euros. The Prior postage stamp will see its unit price increase from 2.17 euros to 2.27 euros. The price of sending packages will also be increased.
Prices might also increase by a further 3% during 2024 if inflation were to rise more than expected, bpost further underlined.
VAT at 6% for demolitions/reconstructions
From January 1, only individuals will benefit from reduced VAT if they demolish and rebuild their home. The projects of developers, investors and multi-owners find the 21% everywhere.
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