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Australiaok

Spanish economy, Spanish Politics 13th April 2023

Australia and UK authorise seizure of Spanish assets over non-payment to renewables investors

Spain is currently the second country in the world with the second highest number of unpaid awards – amounting to 645 million euros – after Venezuela and ahead of Russia. The High Court of Australia has unanimously dismissed an appeal filed by Spain in an international dispute over awards issued by the ICSID, the World Bank’s arbitration body, linked to cuts made to renewables. As a result, some of Spain’s…

Ferrovial

Spanish economy, Spanish Politics 12th April 2023

Government vs. Ferrovial, an asymmetrical equation

Fernando González Urbaneja | It is not often that a government directly confronts a business decision taken by a responsible collegiate body. And when it does happen, it is not often that the government ends up getting fleeced. The relationship of political power with any business, no matter how large, is usually asymmetrical, in favour of the executive. Businessmen avoid confrontation because even if they achieve their aims, they always…

spain tax collection

Spanish economy, Spanish Politics 11th April 2023

Personal income tax return campaign starts today with undeflated rates that will knock another point off Spanish incomes

Taxpayers face the 2022 income tax return campaign that starts today with the decrease in real salary caused by the generalised rise in prices (8.5% in 2022) and the cold progressivity of the Personal Income Tax (IRPF), that is, what they are going to have to pay extra for the rise in salaries, despite having a lower real salary. Deflating the personal income tax brackets by 8.5% to adjust them…

Sumar

Spanish Politics 3rd April 2023

Sumar, Yolanda Díaz’s project, starts off by dividing

The second vice-president of the Government, Yolanda Díaz has finally formalised the announcement of her candidacy for the presidency of the Government. Yesterday, Sunday, the presentation of her new ultra-left political platform, under the name Sumar, took place. The choice of the party’s name, which means ‘add up’ or ‘sum’ in Spanish, could not have been more appropriate, bearing in mind that no fewer than fifteen political forces will be…

ABC

Relevant News Item, Spanish Politics 31st March 2023

Moncloa vetoes ABC newspaper on Sánchez’s Beijing trip

ABC newspaper denounces that “La Moncloa has once again vetoed ABC: the Secretary of State for Communication, Francesc Vallès, has excluded this newspaper from the group of media accompanying the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, on the official trip to China that began this Thursday. Despite the fact that ABC applied for accreditation in due time and form, like other media that have been admitted, the Secretary of State…

Montero

In Spain, Spanish economy, Spanish Politics 31st March 2023

“Only” 4.8% public deficit, says Montero

Fernando González Urbaneja | Listening every day, every hour, to the statements of the ministers takes us to a happy world: everything is going well; everything is historic; impressive achievements. But with the coda that the PP and Feijóo are the worst, capable of ruining everything. So much propagandist mumbo-jumbo that embraces the strategy of information flooding, pounding and pounding. The latest instalment corresponds to the public deficit data for…

pedro sanchez preocupado

In Spain, Spanish Politics 28th March 2023

Changes in Health and Industry: party (PSOE) before government

Fernando González Urbaneja | The mini Cabinet reshuffle is irrelevant: two ministers are leaving, two more are coming in, and none of them will leave their mark on the government. Traditionally we call any change of government a crisis, but this latest one has no more to it than the convenience of the Socialist Party to embellish, at least in appearance, its electoral offer. Two ministers are leaving to head…

Just Sanchez

In Spain, Spanish Politics 22nd March 2023

No-confidence motion against Sánchez: How good my government is, how incompetent the opposition is

Fernando González Urbaneja ! The no-confidence motion against the government led by Ramón Tamames and promoted by the parliamentary group VOX will conclude this Wednesday with an unfavourable vote for the promoters and without major consequences, beyond two parliamentary sessions in which Sánchez has deployed the familiar arguments about the achievements of the government and the incompetence of the opposition, especially the one who was absent, namely Nuñez Feijóo. The…

When the Supreme Court adds to the lack of confidence in Spanish politics

Spanish economy, Spanish Politics 16th March 2023

More legal uncertainty: Supreme Court imposes dividend of 75% of profit after considering it “abusive” to allocate all of it to reserves

In a “revolutionary” ruling dated 11 January 2023, and “as well-intentioned as it is erroneous, and with serious consequences”, the Supreme Court has not limited itself to declaring the nullity, as abusive, of the resolution challenged by the minority shareholder of a company – not to distribute dividends – but also considers – as an effect of the ruling – a corporate resolution in the opposite direction to the one…

housing overvalued

Spanish economy, Spanish Politics 15th March 2023

Doubts over Housing Law, which aims to cap rent rises, paralyses investment by large funds in Spain

Capital Madrid | There is no respite in the battle over the large print of the Housing Law or, more specifically, over the 3% cap on the annual rent increase in contracts. Unidos Podemos wants the bill to be permanent, while the PSOE only wants to extend it for the next year. The political deadlock is causing growing discontent among funds and companies in the sector. Meanwhile, the government complains…