The Brussels agency for the homeless, Samusocial, was able to open its doors to 200 extra people seeking a bed last night, after federal asylum minister Maggie De Block opened up a new building as a homeless shelter. The organisation had to turn away 166 people the previous evening because of lack...

The latest figures released from Belgium’s central bank are good news, showing that the country’s economic growth is at its strongest since the first quarter of 2011. The final quarter of 2013 marked a 0.4% growth in the economy. This marks an upward trend that began last year as the second quarter...

Belgium has found a great way to stuff the coffers by handing out fines to motorists, and a lot of them. Last year, drivers in Belgium donated handsomely to the state, shelling out the amount of €430 million, the majority of it in traffic fines. The 2013 take increased by €50 million over last year...

It seems that not matter how hard many people work, getting ahead for some is becoming more difficult. New figures show that the number of workers in need of government subsidies to reach a living wage is increasing. Belgium’s Federal Public Service Social Security reports that nearly 6,000 people...

The Belgian government has singled out Apple in a ruling that stops mobile phone makers from blocking some carriers’ access to 4G networks. Apple is the primary target of the ruling even though the decision will apply to all phone companies. The California-based tech giant has been a major culprit...

Travellers should expect to pay a bit more on public transport starting this weekend. From 1 February, several of the country’s new laws and regulations will change. In Brussels, the cost of a ticket for one trip on public transport is going up from €2 to €2.10; for five trips from €7.70 to €8 and...

The municipality of Brussels-City and the Brussels-Capital Region have agreed to invest €167.5 each in the Neo project – a massive conference, entertainment and office complex on the Heysel plateau in the north of Brussels. Heysel, where the Atomium and Bruparck are located, belongs to Brussels...

If you heard that the Salon du Chocolat to be held in Tour & Taxis next month was the first of its sort to be held here, your first question might be: “What took them so long?" The Salon is organised by Event International, based in Paris, where they’ve been organising an international fair...

According to reports, Belgium has plenty of available commercial properties to share, and the number continues to rise. At the end of 2013, there were 18,000 empty commercial buildings across the country. The latest figure marks a growing increase of one thousand properties a year. According to...

Brussels local transport company STIB/MIVB has announced its plans to hire 1,000 new employees this year. The recruitment push comes after 847 were hired in 2013 to fulfill the demands of increasing ridership, new projects, and retiring employees, many of whom have been with the company for 35...