Brussels (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – Flemish Parliament member, Robrecht Bothuyne (CD&V), left the real estate company for which he intervened in a 25-home permit file. He was reprimanded for violating ethics rules and sold his shares for €1.
As VRT news reported, Robrecht Bothuyne, a member of the Flemish Parliament for CD&V, has left the real estate company for which he intervened in a permit file. He faced criticism after a news report showed he tried to influence a building permit. He was part-owner of a company that wanted to build 25 homes.
Bothuyne contacted a high-ranking civil servant in an attempt to speed up or influence the approval of a permit. Since he stood to gain personally from the project, this was considered a serious conflict of interest.
The ethics committee of the parliament investigated and concluded that Bothuyne was in breach of parliamentary rules, specifically, he used his position as a member of parliament to further his interests, which is not in keeping with the expectations of integrity and fairness in public office.
“I have indeed distanced myself from the company,”
Robrecht says about this.
What prompted the reprimand of MP Robrecht Bothuyne over his involvement in a 25-home permit case?
After the investigation into Robrecht Bothuyne’s actions, he received a formal reprimand. This was an unusual step in Flemish politics. The reprimand didn’t have any legal consequences, but it made it clear that his behaviour was not acceptable. In response to the controversy, Bothuyne sold his shares in the company for 1 euro. Officials mentioned that the sale didn’t change the fact that a member of parliament had interfered in a government process where he had a financial interest.
The controversy grew when it was discovered that Robrecht Bothuyne used his official parliamentary email to contact a top civil servant about a private construction project. This project involved a housing development where Bothuyne had a financial interest.
By using his official email, he mixed his public role with his private interests. This made it seem like he was trying to use his political influence. Officials mentioned that the email was key evidence in the ethical review, which found that Bothuyne broke the rules. His actions raised concerns about using political influence in planning.
After the Council for Permit Disputes invalidated the housing project’s permit, the project faced challenges. The permit was invalidated because the Province of East Flanders, Belgium, relied on an agency, the Agency for Nature and Forests (ANB), that did not adhere to the ANB’s advice.
The ANB advised that certain houses would be too close to a NATURA 2000 nature reserve and would violate environmental standards. Experts also mentioned the area has a flooding history, so building homes there could be unsafe.
“The provincial executive has granted the building project a permit without sufficient certainty that the flood water would be collected on its own property,”
The Council stated.
