Belgium

The European Parliament strongly condemned the conviction of Olivier Vandecasteele, the Belgian imprisoned in Iran since February 2022, and voted a motion for a resolution on the EU response to protests and executions

Dutch and Belgian customs will continue their cooperation against drug smuggling in the ports of Rotterdam and Antwerp in 2023

The net monthly salary of public and private sector workers will increase by €600 net per year from January, due to the adjustment of the tax scale and the calculation of withholding tax

Four Belgian banks, an airline and a chemical company are involved in Israeli settlements on Palestinian territory, according to Don't Buy Into Occupation; EU considers Israeli settlements illegal under international law

PAN Europe and Nature&Progrès Belgium took legal action against the systematic authorisation of two cypermethrin-based insecticides, jointly asking the Belgian Council of State to immediately suspend the authorisation

81% of Belgians say they have lowered their heating compared to last winter, with little difference between the different regions of Belgium; 31% have set their heating to 19℃, a value recommended by the Belgian authorities, 18% even to 18°

Fifa has ordered the country to remove the word 'love' from the collar of its World Cup shirt

Following the opening of the first lab in Belgium in October 2021, Orange Belgium, in collaboration with Grand Poste, officially opened a 5G Lab in the city of Liège

Last month, the first and only pilot line of bio-aromatics from lignin in Europe was officially opened; the replacement of fossil-based products with biobased alternatives represents a major economic challenge for the European chemical industry

The first master's degree programme on cybersecurity, from the Catholic University of Leuven (KU Leuven), has been launched, with the programme focusing on the vulnerabilities of online systems and the risks of digitisation

After 2 months of work, with the help of mountaineers, the Walloon railway station of Liège-Guillemins has been transformed into an installation of light and colour by French conceptual artist Daniel Buren; the work will be officially inaugurated today

Reduced 6% VAT for gas and electricity has been made ‘permanent’, while the country proposes a €4.7 billion 'crisis contribution' from energy companies

European Sustainable Energy Week 2022 opens today in Brussels under the title ‘Going green and digital for Europe’s energy transition’; works can be followed online upon registration