00:00The Belgian government has agreed a multi-year budget plan,
00:05following months of negotiations, uncertainty and several missed deadlines.
00:09The deal was reached on Monday after 20 hours of talks,
00:14fulfilling Prime Minister Bart de Weyfer's pledge to resolve the issue before Christmas.
00:19Tax hikes on certain products and services and cuts in government spending
00:23are expected to lower the federal deficit by 9.2 billion euros by 2029.
00:30The deal did not avert the planned three-day nationwide strike
00:33that started late on Sunday evening.
00:36The strike, organized by the country's three largest trade unions,
00:40had been planned in response to the government's proposed pension and labor market reforms
00:44and is going ahead despite the long-sought budget deal.
00:49Public transport services were disrupted throughout Monday,
00:52with the strike expanding to the public sector on Tuesday,
00:55affecting schools and certain public services.
01:00etc.
01:02The bank,
01:06the government,
01:07the company,
01:07the company,
01:08the company,
01:09the company,
01:10the company.
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