Two parties call for guaranteed minimum service during Stib strikes

The Brussels parliament will be asked to debate in the coming weeks whether public transport operator Stib should be required to offer a guaranteed level of service in the event of a strike.

Vincent de Wolf, the head of the opposition MR party in the region's parliament, which is tabling the proposition, said: "We are not calling into question the right to strike - we just want a minimum level of service for those who need it: people with urgent hospital appointments for example. If you ask the people of Brussels, I think it is a reasonable proposition."

It is the second time that MR has tried to establish a minimum service for Stib. This time it will present the findings of a study into the busiest bus, tram and metro lines, and argue that these lines should be a matter of priority.

The idea has the support of the cdH party - which is one of the partners in the coalition that has a majority in the Brussels parliament. It says Brussels should not be "paralysed" by industrial action. Brussels mobility minister Pascal Smet has rejected the idea.