BRUSSELS — Belgium’s coalition agreed a budget deal early Monday that will see Prime Minister Bart De Wever’s government avoid collapse.

The center-right government, led by Flemish separatist De Wever, struck a multi-year deal to plug a €9.2 billion budget gap by 2029 after months of disagreement.

De Wever had set a Christmas deadline after talks appeared to reach a deadlock earlier this month.

“Today the labor, tomorrow the fruit,” De Wever said in a post on X, adding that the deal and other reforms would improve Belgium’s debt position by €32 billion.

Belgium’s deficit has reached 5.4 percent of GDP this year, while public debt stands at 104.7 percent of GDP. Last week, the European Commission warned that, in case of unchanged policy, Belgium’s deficit could reach 5.9 percent by 2027, with only Poland performing worse in the EU.

The government hiked excise duties on natural gas, while certain recreational products, such as hotel stays and takeaway food, will become more expensive. Taxes on flight tickets are also increased, from €5 to €10.

There won’t be a general hike in value-added tax, however, as the Francophone liberal MR party resisted that measure.

Belgium also tweaked its wage-indexing method, whereby salaries increase linked to inflation, with the changes affecting high earners.

The government also committed to putting 100,000 people who are currently on sick leave back to work. It also introduced a €2 tax on packages from non-European webshops, such as Chinese e-commerce platform Shein.

De Wever’s administration secured the deal at the start of a three-day general strike that is affecting public transport, public services and schools.