With no government, there is very little to ratify. This means parliament can make laws as it pleases, but with what majority? With nine parties still in the running for government, every combination becomes possible, with unpredictable outcomes.

With 27 seats, N-VA is the largest group in federal parliament, but with a good number of inexperienced MPs, it has yet to master the game. The past couple of weeks, N-VA has lost votes on issues such as banking secrecy, climate measures and quota for women on boards. This is obviously not what N-VA expected. Shortly before the vote on banking secrecy, its speaker Jan Jambon even threatened to boycott the ultimate attempt at shaping a federal government if the vote did not go his way.

N-VA is finding it hard to decide whether it wants to be a majority or an opposition party. Being in the majority requires some discipline, not just in voting behaviour in parliament, but also in holding back criticism. This goes against N-VA's rebel nature. Being an opposition party means you can shout whatever you like - but you are left without any real decision power. This last part sits uneasy with N-VA, too, as prove Jambon's spontaneous outburst and a recent demand to be heard in the long-term budget talks.

This leads some, including former prime minister Guy Verhofstadt (Open VLD), to the conclusion that forming a government with N-VA is just not possible. It definitely makes the job of CD&V president Wouter Beke, whom the king appointed as yet another mediator to form a federal government, a lot harder.

In the background there is some rivalry between CD&V and N-VA, who have acted as allies so far, to become the definitive number one party in Flanders. CD&V traditionally has strong grassroots, while N-VA depends more on the whims of the electorate. The 2012 local elections might reverse the roles, with N-VA's Bart De Wever possibly taking over city hall in Antwerp. It is therefore likely that N-VA might stick to this attitude, halfway between majority and opposition, for yet another long year.