Congress has rejected for the second and final time the fiscal path designed by the Government as a necessary prerequisite for drafting the 2027 Budget, which would be the first and also the last of the legislature, given that the country has been operating for three years on the extended 2023 budget approved in 2022 by a different Parliament.
The vote yielded the exact same result as the first attempt a week ago. PP, Vox, Junts, and UPN expressed their rejection with a total of 176 “no” votes—thus surpassing the absolute majority threshold. The four MPs from Podemos and the MP from Compromís, assigned to the Mixed Group, abstained, while PSOE, Sumar, PNV, EH Bildu, ERC, BNG, and CC—166 seats—voted in favor.
Following this second vote against, the Government maintains its commitment to finally present a State Budget bill, despite knowing full well that it will most likely fail to pass. It will explore a new path: sending a Budget bill to Parliament with more restrictive deficit margins aligned with the strict fiscal rules set by the European Commission. Ultimately, this means Autonomous Communities will not have the 0.1% GDP margin to spend (€5.84 billion over three years) by running a deficit.
