Speech by acting President of the Government during continuation of Investiture Debate for Presidency of the Government in Lower House of Parliament

Lower House of Parliament , Madrid

Madam Speaker, Honourable Members,

I take the floor once again in this investiture process with the confidence that at the end of this session we can announce to the Spanish people that Spain now has a government, that this interim period has concluded, that the main source of uncertainty has now been dispelled and that we are now, finally, in a position to resume operations.

I am not going to take up much of your time, Honourable Members, just enough to make a couple of comments on the sense and responsibility of this vote. First of all, I would like to express my recognition for the group of Cuidadanos and its leader, Albert Rivera, as well as for Ana Oramas, of Coalición Canaria, who have helped bring an end to this period of uncertainty. I would also thank the People's Party and the formations with whom we form a coalition and that have accompanied me during this whole period: Unión del Pueblo Navarro, Foro Asturias and Partido Aragonés.

I would like to also add that I am fully aware of what Thursday's vote means, in all its facets, as well as regarding what others have announced they will do today.

Having said that, the first comment that I wish to make to all of you is that Spain needs something more than a simple investiture. It needs a government that is in a position to govern, not to be governed but to govern. I am not asking for a blank cheque, as you know, I am only calling for a government to be formed, which is not the same.

This story doesn't end today, Honourable Members, it is just starting. Today we are paving the way for the future, a future which, without a majority, means we must all be responsible. It falls to all of us to ensure, for the good of Spain, not only the government that it so needed, but also its capacity to govern, which is tantamount to saying its effectiveness as a government. The investiture vote is not only a responsibility that must be discharged; what it must be, above all, is a commitment to the future and it is a commitment incumbent on everyone.

The policy of any sensible government is to set just one course, and it is the government which must set this. That is why it exists and it is voted in to that end. That is implicit in a vote, if we are talking here about a responsible vote. Everybody knows that you cannot govern with several criteria at the same time, just as you cannot govern with two budgets at the same time.

We have survived 300 days with a caretaker government, but we cannot survive with a government that cannot govern because it lacks support or because the obstacles are too big to overcome. The price would be ruinous.

Voting responsibly in favour of the investiture thus implies a commitment to try to undertake projects, particularly on those issues that are essential for the well-being of the Spanish people, projects which, by the way, have nothing to do with the political leaning of the government, such as our European commitments and budget stability. If another political formation was governing, would that mean the commitments taken on would not be met? Would our budget stability be breached if others governed?

Honourable Members, this responsibility falls on us all, not just on me. I would add that, as is obvious, when you cannot control revenue or public spending, you quite simply cannot govern. You and I know that it is not reasonable to govern without a budget and we must all accept the consequences of that. It makes no sense to say that Spain is going to be facilitated with a government if there is no willingness to provide it with its main work tool.

Honourable Members,

I repeated this time and again in the speech I gave on Thursday - none of what I am calling for will be possible without agreements. I offered my pre-disposition to dialogue and my sincere intention to reach understandings, and this is not the first time I have said that, nor was it 48 hours ago: I have been saying this since 21 December, the day after the elections. I understood back then where we stood; I took note of the intention of the Spanish people and acted accordingly. Since then, I repeat, I have not stopped proposing the need for agreements. I am the first one interested in us seeking and reaching agreements. I am prepared to correct whatever needs correcting, improve what can be improved on and give way on all that is reasonable. We will skimp on neither time nor effort in this matter. We need a government that can govern and I will work every day towards ensuring this governability.

Honourable Members of Parliament,

Dialogue yes, all you want, but let's not fool ourselves, Honourable Members, let's not try to do more than the circumstances will allow us. We must negotiate within the limits of the prevailing reality, which has nothing to do with the political party in government or its strength or weaknesses. The limits have not changed. I am not allowed to negotiate the unity of Spain, or the equality of the Spanish people; nor can I breach our commitments with the European Union or the rules on budget stability. It would be useless to suppose that these issues are up for negotiation. I cannot negotiate them and nor can anyone else. What is more, it is the responsibility of all of us not to put this up for debate; we must uphold the law, respect the rules and remain loyal to our commitments.

On top of this, I would add that a limit exists that only depends on me; a limit I self-impose quickly. I don't intend to take power to impose any form of politics. I am not willing to tear down what we have built up. Things can undoubtedly be improved upon, but I cannot accept tearing them down. No-one should expect that I contribute to harming our economic recovery or job creation. I will not impose that harm on the Spanish people.

It makes no sense to get rid of all the reforms we have undertaken. We will improve what can be improved upon, but we will not stop Spain being the country to enjoy the fastest rate of growth in Europe and to create the most jobs. Is that such a bad thing?

Honourable Members,

I am taking power to persevere with our policies. Some will reproach me for that. I know that some people want to reverse the policies we have implemented, but to do that others will need to form a government. You cannot expect me to govern and betray my own political project which, moreover, was the project to receive the greatest support from the Spanish people. Don't ask or expect to impose on me what I cannot accept.

As I said at the start, I perfectly appreciate the unprecedented situation in which we find ourselves, but I hope that you will also appreciate that you don't support an investiture and then abandon the government that derives from that. I say that today so that no-one is fooled and also so that no-one expects us to fool the Spanish people.

I am not asking for your vote to be for a multi-purpose government that lacks direction. I have a job to do, the results to back that up and a direction to take. That is what we have been resolving in these investiture negotiations; the support offered is not for an abstract government, or to cover a hole, or to fill a vacancy in the State administration; this vote is to invest a candidate that comes here with a plan. It is with this project that I ask for the vote of confidence of this House; it is this project that you are giving your vote to.

I am not asking for the world, Honourable Members; I am asking for a predictable government, which means that its broad strokes are well-known from the start, a government that announces from the outset what is going to happen and, in particular, states what is not going to happen so that everyone knows where they stand.

I will end now, Madam Speaker.

The Spanish people can have great expectations if we don't ruin this for them, either because there is no government or because this government is not allowed to govern, both options are as bad as each other. Not only will this government start to work, Honourable Members, but the whole of Spain will. There are countless business decisions, capital investments and entrepreneurial initiatives that have been on standby for months waiting for the outlook to improve; I repeat, waiting for the outlook to improve, that is, for something more to be offered than a powerless investiture.

Let's face the consequences of our decisions. Those who think that absolute majorities held by others are not a good thing, and I believe there are many here who think that way, should concern themselves more than anyone else to show that Spain can be governed and governed well although there is no absolute majority. Whoever thinks that absolute majorities are harmful should be the first to stand up and show that Spanish politicians are capable of reaching an agreement, because in this House there should be no lack of support for carrying through its tasks. I invite you to find a way to make things go as well as possible for the people of Spain, within the limits of a set of circumstances that are not easy for anyone.

Once again, I would say that I am not asking for a blank cheque, Honourable Members, I am asking for maturity, I am asking that, when a step is taken, the consequences of this step are taken into account and I am asking for us all to say to the Spanish people that they can count on a government that can govern, not through its own strength, but because there is no support lacking in this House to push through its work. In Europe that is called exercising a responsible opposition.

For my part, I repeat, there are two pitfalls I won't fall into: the first, forgetting the restrictions on the reality I am facing and, the second, wasting the opportunities that this situation offers us.

I would ask Honourable Members, for a government that does not ruin the bright future available to us in the coming years, because our first goal must be to consolidate what we have already obtained, we must continue to improve and maintain the job creation rate, harness the opportunities and not waste the confidence we have been granted. With this aim in mind, I ask for the confidence of this House to carry out the government programme that my candidature represents.

That is all. Thank you very much, Honourable Members of Parliament, Madam Speaker.