Although the annual rate of inflation moderated in November to 6.8 % – from 10.8 % in July – food prices are still at a record high of 15.3 %. That is why the government will today propose a third support package that will include the extension of some of the measures currently in force, which expire on 31 December, and other new ones, mainly related to the shopping basket….
In a scenario of unprecedented institutional crisis, the Constitutional Court agreed yesterday by a slim majority of its members (6 votes to 5) to paralyse the legal reform promoted by the Government parties in Parliament to change the functioning of both the General Council of the Judiciary and the High Court by express means. This reform allowed the Government majority to reduce the 3/5 majority required until now to appoint…
The digital newspaper El Debate publishes today an interview with Cesar Antonio Molina, Minister of Culture in the PSOE government of José Luis Rodriguez Zapatero. Q -It has come to our attention that several former PSOE ministers and deputies, both from the time of Felipe González and from the time of José Luís Rodríguez Zapatero, have signed a manifesto against the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, who is also…
The Cabinet is preparing to extend the anti-takeover shield that it put in place in 2020, at the height of the pandemic, to protect companies in key sectors from foreign bids, according to government sources. The measure, which gives the government the power to veto the entry of foreign capital into these sectors, was due to expire on 31 December this year and is being extended until 31 December 2024….
In an interview granted yesterday to the newspaper La Razón, the socialist leader explains that he speaks “from his conscience” for “many other socialists” who have the same opinion but do not have a voice. Q- What is the cost to Spain of repealing the crime of sedition? asks La RazónA- The current president of the Generalitat set 2030 as the date for a new illegal referendum, if I remember…
Yesterday morning, Isabel Rodríguez, the government’s minister spokesperson, complained that what is highlighted in the press “has nothing to do with what has been adopted in the Council of Ministers”. And she concluded that “just as we have a space for the weather, to find out if it is going to rain, given the need for the public to have access to accurate information, we should reserve a space for…
Fernando González Urbaneja | The ECB’s non-binding considerations on the “temporary levy on banks (an economic benefit that is not a tax) could have merited a silent response from the government, an “informed but not concerned” or something similar, but they have produced an irritation with disqualifications and scorn that can only be the result of irresistible arrogance. It is well known that this government, especially the president, does not…
The coalition government led by Pedro Sánchez has decided to implement a 4% pay rise for next year, above the 3.5% planned for civil servants and MPs. With this, Prime Minister Sánchez’s annual salary will be 90,010.20 euros a year, which means a monthly salary of 7,500 euros. The Ministry of Finance agreed with unions Comisiones Obreras and UGT a salary increase for civil servants of up to 3.5% in…
J.P. Marín-Arrese | The ruling coalition in Spain faces a dim prospect in the coming elections next year. According to the polls, the main Opposition party, bolstered by its new leadership, is poised to snatch a comfortable victory. It seems even close to securing an overall majority, counting on a helping hand from the extreme right and some minor partners. To ward off the danger of a crushing defeat, the…
Fernando Gonzalez Urbaneja | I don’t want to assign the role of Richard III in the Spanish political drama, but the main contenders, Pedro Sánchez and Alberto Nuñez Feijóo, although with different intensity, are doomed to opt for whatever it takes to succeed and fail, like Richard III. The recent debate (combat) in the Senate between the two politicians with pretensions to rent La Moncloa showed desperation, obsession, determination to…