Violent Clashes During Brussels Protests

Riots erupted after more than 100,000 workers marched through central Brussels to demonstrate against austerity reforms.

Police used water cannon and tear gas when hundreds of protesters began overturning cars, setting off fireworks, torching bins and throwing items such as paving stones at officers.

Many of those involved in clashes were dockers, according to reports.

Police said they cleared the area by late afternoon.

The protest marked the start of a month-long campaign against Belgium's new centre-right coalition, which wants to extend the pension age from 65 to 67, contain wages and cut public services.

Paramedics treated at least one protester, who suffered a broken nose.

Sky News Europe Correspondent Robert Nisbet, in Brussels, said: "What we saw was hundreds of people clashing with police, many taking out cobble stones from some of the ancient streets around here and hurling them at police.

"It's fair to say all this took police by surprise and this is not the end of the story. They're planning this every Monday until 15 December."

Rail companies sold low-cost tickets to increase protest numbers in the capital.

Unions contradicted police figures by saying 120,000 demonstrators were present on the march.

Their month of action will be capped with a nationwide strike on 15 December.

"The signal is clear. People are angry, livid. This government's policies are totally unbalanced," said ACV union chief Marc Leemans.

The first protest partially paralysed the capital of the European Union on a day when finance ministers from eurozone countries were due to arrive.

Member states like Greece, Spain and Italy have also experienced violent protests against austerity.

The Belgian cabinet is holding crisis talks with the three main unions today.

The unrest comes after the Socialists were excluded from government for the first time in 26 years.

Central bank governor Luc Coene said Belgium needed reforms to cuts a public sector debt that stands at about 100% of annual output.

"The people who go on strike against these savings measures are actually saying to their children: get lost. I find that really bad," Mr Coene said in an interview in Trends magazine.