Poll about King Albert II 2008; 50% thinks he is doing a good job

[Marengo]

According to a poll by Sud Presse over 50% of the Belgians think that the king is doing a good job at the moment. Only 20% thinks his efforts are insufficient.

Over 72% does not want the king to abdicate any time soon for his son Phillipe, though 36,5% expects that he will do just that somewhere in the future.

33% thinks that the king should aknowledge Delphine, 60% thinks that Queen Paola is doing a good job.

Article in Dutch here.

[Royal Fan]

He is doing good and his son should succeed him.

[Odette]

He should remain King for as long as possible. There are too many clouds over the family right now and it would be the least (IMHO) favourable time for Phillippe to become King.
More than 50% approval is very good. Why fix something that is not broken?

[Thomas Parkman]

Given the fact that the Belgian political situation is impossible I think the poll figures are impressive. At this point in time there needs to be as little change as possible in the positions of the Belgian Royal Family. King Albert is a fundamentally decent man caught in an outrageous situation. The idea of Belgium fragmenting into two or three nations states is inherently ridiculous. The monarchy can perform an invaluable service at this time and under these circumstances. Cheers.

[Royal Fan]

Ive recently thought has The Duke of Brabant ever expressed a desire to be Leopold IV that would give a sense of continuity.

[LadyLeana]

Originally Posted by Royal Fan

Ive recently thought has The Duke of Brabant ever expressed a desire to be Leopold IV that would give a sense of continuity.

Not that I know of. It would give a sense of continuity, but not of trust. The last Leopold was not very popular for his behaviour during and after the war. Also, Leopold II is always associated with Congo, which is a black mark in Belgian history. So this would probably not be a good idea.

This is reassuring for the King, I should think. to have about 50% of the people behind you in your decisions is about as much as you can expect in a difficult country like Belgium.

[Thomas Parkman]

Odd isn't it. Here you have a lovely country with a rich history and magnificent culture, a country that more or less has it made, horrbile history as a battlefield to the contrary notwithstanding and lo and behold it is "a difficult country like Belgium" Maybe all those people should go and live in Zimbabwe for a couple of months. Cheers.

[LadyLeana]

I meant politically difficult of course. When two communities (or the politicians who represent the communities) in one country cannot get along, it's always difficult. It's true there is no civil war, and the situation is not like Zimbabwe. But politically the country is a mess, and nobody seems to have any idea what to do about it. In such "difficult" circumstances, it is truly admirable that 50% supports the King.

Other than that (the weather and taxes also ignored) Belgium is heaven on earth.