Paul Magnette, a Belgian politician and leader of the socialist party, is calling for the country to ban internet shopping. His main objection is the treatment of workers, telling Flemish newspaper Humo:
The Guardian reports he also complained that “current trends were hollowing out urban centers.” According to a separate editorial in Humo, the idea has not been received uncritically.
Wondering how this was being received in Belgium, we asked Adrian Hiel, who does policy and communications for Energy Cities from Brussels, who tells Treehugger:
But figuring out ways to keep our Main Streets—or, as they call them in Europe, High Streets—viable in the face of online shopping is a serious problem that we have discussed often on Treehugger. Hiel continues:
Katherine Martinko, Treehugger’s senior editor, has also described how she supports her local Main Street and found it faster than online shopping during the pandemic and plans to continue:
Perhaps Magnette is on to something, looking for radical solutions to the problems stemming from lousy warehouse jobs and the troubles on Main Street. A decade ago on Treehugger, we were big fans of the Reoccupy Main Street campaign, looking at more radical solutions such as seriously taxing online retailers and even banning them for their predatory business practices. At the time one might have considered and laughed at the idea of shooting Jeff Bezos into space.
In a more recent post, “What is the Future of Our Main Streets?,” a city official reminded us: “These avenues were once populated by business owners who lived above their stores and owned the building. Now, many small business owners lease space.” The stores are owned by investors and developers waiting to turn them into condos, and all you get on the ground floor are banks and drug store chains. Every year there seems to be less Main Street to actually reoccupy.
As Hiel reminds us, Magnette likes to be the center of attention. Canadian readers may remember how he single-handedly torpedoed the Free Trade deal between Canada and the European Union and became “the man who made Canada weep.” His position on internet shopping may be just as controversial—and perhaps a little out of touch with the reality of the times.
