Merger of Brussels police zones confirmed for 2027

Belgium's federal government has given the green light for a unified Brussels police zone, set to take effect in the first half of 2027.

In the first half of 2027, the six zones will merge into one, Bruzz reports. The previously proposed date of 1 January 2027 was deemed too soon.

The deal was finalised during the federal council, as part of discussions by the core cabinet on a series of measures concerning pensions, taxation, funding for public social welfare centres and labour market reform.

“After more than 15 years of talks, the time has finally come: Brussels will have a single police zone,” said interior minister Bernard Quintin (MR).

“This is a historic step forward for greater security and trust. This merger will give the people of Brussels the security they deserve, offer people a safe place to work in the capital and allow everyone to enjoy Brussels in confidence and peace.”

The new zone will be managed by a chief of police who "will operate on the basis of an overarching security vision for the region", according to the announcement.

The 19 Brussels mayors will sit on the police board together with the chief of police and, in consultation with the judicial authorities, will help to create a "security vision".

The new Brussels police zone will also have a daily management office consisting of seven to eight people appointed by the police council.

Existing police councils throughout the country will also be reorganised, Quintin said, adding that the merger in Brussels is expected to result in annual savings of about€2 million.

To implement police zone reorganisation nationally, however, the reform will cost a total of €55 million, spread over five years. Flemish or Walloon police zones that wish to follow the Brussels example before December 2029 will also be able to count on financial incentives.

“We’re sending a double message: to citizens, that our police are visible, strong and present, and to criminals, that we have the power to intervene decisively,” Quintin said.

How the more than 6,000 police officers in Brussels will be distributed will be decided by the future police college. It is expected that some of the current officers will only be deployed for interventions throughout the region, while others will remain active at the local level.

Many of the details regarding the merger have not yet been shared and so unions are cautious about commenting.

“We still have to see how this will work in practice,” said ACV Politie’s Joery Dehaes.

“We’re in favour of economies of scale, but Brussels is not the place where this is most urgent. If you drive 15 kilometres outside Brussels, you enter zones with emergency services of less than 50 people. There, the need for a merger is slightly greater.”

Dehaes suspects the merger is less about benefits for policing and more about politics.

“Above a certain size, the benefits of scaling up diminish, and in Brussels, each zone already has at least 1,000 officers,” said Dehaes.

“Moreover, the six Brussels police zones are not even among the worst performers in the country. But now they want to use Brussels as an example in a political game.”

Police union NSPV’s Thierry Belin disagrees. “Nothing in the Brussels zones works, nothing runs as it should,” Belin said.

“Security in Brussels is simply a disaster. Here, people shoot with Kalashnikovs on a daily basis, even on terraces. In some neighbourhoods, residents no longer dare to take their post out of their letterboxes because dealers use them as storage places.”

Belin said that criminals no longer fear police and that "all parties" were to blame, especially for a rise in drug-related violence that he said had not seen a strong enough political response.

“The mayors are unable to respond to this because they seem to be in permanent campaign mode – they don't dare to take action for fear of the electoral consequences,” said Belin.

“We still think the merger is a step too far, but continuing as we are is out of the question. Decisions are now needed.”