Article: Holding together: Belgium.(coalition government survives election)

SOMEHOW, Jean-Luc Dehaene, deservedly nicknamed the "plumber" of Belgian politics, has fixed it. On May 21st his four-party coalition emerged almost unscathed from national and regional elections, despite its inability to control public debt and a corruption scandal that has sapped its strength. By contrast, the conservative-minded Liberals and the separatist far right have missed a golden opportunity for electoral advance.

The more that Belgium's 7.2m electors--compelled by law to vote-- think about the break-up of their country, the less they seem to like the idea. In Antwerp, Belgium's biggest Flemish city, the largest party is the populist Flemish Block, which ...

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