Belgian deputy PM to welcome guests at Parliament Magazine reception

By Martha Moss - 4th August 2010

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News just in that Belgium's deputy prime minister Steven Vanackere will be the guest speaker at the Parliament Magazine's Belgian presidency reception.

The reception will take place in the parliament's members' restaurant on September 1, as MEPs return to work and the Belgian EU council presidency hits its two-month mark.

Hosted by the Parliament Magazine's MEP editor Catherine Stihler, and with some 300 guests - including Belgian ministers - expected to attend, the event promises to welcome parliament back with a bang.

The start of Belgium's presidency may have been somewhat overshadowed by the country's political crisis - there has been a caretaker government in place since June's elections produced no clear winner.

And in the Parliament Magazine's special presidency issue Vanackere, who is also Belgium's foreign minister, acknowledges that the presidency "might enjoy less visibility" as a result of the new framework created by the entry into force of the Lisbon treaty.

Political wrangling aside, this event provides the opportunity for ministers, MEPs and EU policymakers to come together and celebrate all things Belgian - with a bag of frites and a glass of beer in hand.