Greoli was one of the signatories of the agreement, alongside Kris Peeters for the Federal Government, and Sven Gatz, representing the Flemish Community.
The promulgation of the law means that the rules on books will be the same in Brussels as those in the two communities. French-language books sold in the capital will have to respect the rules of a French Community decree on standardized prices for books, issued on 19 October 2017. Similarly, books in Dutch that are sold in Brussels must now comply with the rules set by the Flemish Community.
According to Alda Greoli, the measure seeks to help promote reading by democratizing books, scrapping a surtax charged to consumers for books edited overseas, and fostering fair competition between small bookstores, large department stories and online booksellers.
From 5 April, the standardised price for books will apply throughout Belgium.
Maria Novak
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