Today's Top Stories - August 24, 2012

Record price for diesel: government rejects call for lower VAT 

The federal government says it has no immediate plans to apply a lower VAT tariff to diesel following a call by motoring association Touring. The appeal came as diesel rose today to a record €1.5870 a litre. Finance minister Steven Vanackere said it was a question that could be raised for the next budget but not now. The state can renounce a part of the VAT revenue raised by the price hike, but its effect on the pump price would be minimal. In the past, this system has been applied when diesel passed €1.50 a litre and petrol €1.70 a litre, but it came to an end on December 31 last year.

Belgian property prices 60 percent too high

Belgian property prices are up to 60 per cent too high, according to Standard & Poor’s. The agency confirms the findings published last week in The Economist, which showed that Belgian properties are overvalued by 64 percent against rents and 47 percent against disposable income. Despite these alarming figures, Belgian homeowners needn’t fear a property crash, says the report from Standard & Poor’s, arguing that “demand for property remains high because the population and the number of families keep growing, whereas the offer is limited because there aren’t enough new properties on the market.”

iPad  included in compulsory school materials list

The 710 pupils of St Peter’s college and St Joseph’s business school in the seaside town of Blankenberge will each have to report to school on September 3 equipped with an iPad. The school governor had announced in March that pupils would have to purchase the Apple tablet in order to keep up with the classes there. A dozen parents had complained to the education department, which subsequently ruled in their favour. But the school authorities have appealed against the decision and opted to carry on with their project. “Our [educational] project is at such an advanced stage that it would be impossible for us to backtrack”, said Nicole Vancoillie, chairwoman of the school’s board. 

Planckendael welcomes new baby zebra Noni

Mechelen animal and conservation park Planckendael celebrated the arrival of a 30 kg female baby zebra on Monday evening. She belongs to the Grévy or imperial zebra family which originates from the south of Ethiopia and northern Kenya. It is an endangered species; there remain only around 2,500 in the world and her birth was part of a larger European breeding project. Noni, in Africa her name signifies gift of God, and her mother Betina have already been on display in the zebra’s outside enclosure. They can be seen again today until 16.00. Noni was Betina’s fourth foal and a first for father Chris; the number of zebras at Planckendael is now five. The park also supports the Marwell Wildlife Conservation Project in Kenya which boasts the largest population of Grévy zebras.

Belgian Formula One grand prix stays at least until 2015

The Belgian Grand Prix will continue until the end of 2015, after a new deal was signed by the Walloon government and the Formula One group, writes British sports journalist Joe Saward on his blog. Although financial details are never announced in these matters, Walloon Finance minister Jean-Claude Marcourt said that the cost of the contract was reduced. The Formula One group has to ensure that a certain number of historic races are included on the F1 calendar, and Spa is deemed to be one of them. Spa has been the home of the Belgian Grand Prix since 1925; it became firmly established on the Grand Prix calendar in 1933 and remained a key element of the F1 World Championship until 1970, when poor safety on the old circuit led to the race switching to Nivelles and Zolder. Spa was substantially rebuilt, and the event returned in 1983.The events in 2003 and 2006 were cancelled because of disputes over tobacco sponsorship and financing issues.

Read the full article on Joe Saward’s blog.