{"id":3226,"date":"2023-11-20T15:58:43","date_gmt":"2023-11-20T15:58:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/influencespain.com\/pedro-sanchez-2-0\/"},"modified":"2024-01-09T16:00:28","modified_gmt":"2024-01-09T16:00:28","slug":"pedro-sanchez-2-0","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/influenzespain.com\/es\/pedro-sanchez-2-0\/","title":{"rendered":"Pedro S\u00e1nchez 2.0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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By: Sebastian Mariz<\/a>, Managing Director of Influence Spain<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n

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As we predicted, \u00a0at the beginning of October, Mr. Pedro S\u00e1nchez has managed to muster enough support from a splintering of minority parties in the national Parliament to form a new coalition Government with the new communist party, SUMAR. In the investiture vote, which took place on Thursday the 16th<\/sup> of November<\/a>, he received 179 votes in favour, to 171 votes against.\u00a0 The result reflects an almost even split in Parliament between leftist and regionalist parties in favour of a Mr. Pedro S\u00e1nchez\u00a0 Government for the next four years, and the conservative and far-right votes against. This split has spilled onto the streets with hundreds of thousands of voters protesting in provincial capitals across the country against the concessions made by Mr. S\u00e1nchez, to the communists and the smaller regionalist parties, in exchange for their support.<\/p>\n\n

Concessions to the regions<\/u><\/strong><\/h3>\n\n

As we also predicted back in October, these concessions include tabling a law on amnesty for the exiled Catalan political leaders who orchestrated the failed referendum on Catalan independence in 2017<\/a>. This draft law, which was tabled on Monday the 13th<\/sup> of October, now has to go through the parliamentary adoption process with two readings in the Parliament and the Senate and will likely come under careful scrutiny by both the Constitutional and Supreme Courts. Failure to adopt it, will mean the agreement between the Catalan pro-independence,\u00a0 the conservative Junts party and Mr. Pedro S\u00e1nchez will be broken, and parliamentary support from the 7 Junts Members of Parliament lost, leaving Mr. Sanchez shy of four seats to get legislation passed and will open up the possibility of new general elections.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n

Of equal importance, Mr. S\u00e1nchez and his Catalan coalition partners have agreed to negotiate substantial changes to the Statute governing relations between the Catalan Government and the central Government, fiscal autonomy in Catalonia and the organization of a referendum on independence authorized by the King and Central Government, agreed on by an absolute majority of MPs in the national Parliament and open to all Spaniards. Mr. S\u00e1nchez has also agreed to a 15 billion euros haircut to Catalonia\u2019s public debt owed to the Central Government, joint control over regional train services and increased budget transfers to Catalonia in the areas of R&D, study grants and scholarships, judicial institutions, prisons and education.<\/p>\n\n

This haircut to Catalonia\u2019s debt with the central Government will be extended to the rest of Spain\u2019s 17 regions, which together owe the State almost 192 billion euros, or 20% of Spain\u2019s GDP. If Mr. S\u00e1nchez applies the same haircut percentage to the rest of the regions, the central Government will have to foot the bill for an additional 24 billion euros in regional debt, making the total cheque made out to the regions equal to more than 39 billion euros or 3% of Spain\u2019s GDP. This commitment will undoubtedly have an impact on Spain\u2019s public debt and deficit figures and its commitment to the EU stability and growth pact.<\/p>\n\n

In addition, Mr. S\u00e1nchez has also agreed to negotiating new changes to the Statute governing relations with the Basque Country and Galicia, recognising the national and distinctive identity of both of these regions and opening the door to possible negotiations on new forms of autonomy in both regions.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n

In the case of the Basque Country, MR. S\u00e1nchez has agreed to grant the Basque Country full control over social dialogue agreements and collective bargaining affecting all workers and companies residing in the Basque Country, control over regional train services, and negotiations on a possible opt-out of the Basque Country from the national social security and pension scheme.\u00a0 Interestingly, Mr. S\u00e1nchez has agreed to restrict his use of the Royal Decree Laws to pass controversial legislation and will only do so after consulting with his Basque coalition partners. This commitment has also been included in the agreement signed with Coalici\u00f3n Canaria from the Canary Islands.<\/p>\n\n

Coalition agreement with SUMAR<\/span><\/h4>\n\n

Ms. Yolanda D\u00edaz, the acting Minister of Employment and leader of the new communist coalition, SUMAR, will repeat as Minister of Employment and as 2nd<\/sup> Deputy Prime Minister, and lead the junior partner in the coalition.\u00a0 In exchange for her 31 seats in Parliament, S\u00e1nchez has agreed to the following policy\/legislative agenda:<\/p>\n\n