Press conference by President of the Government after meeting of Council of Ministers

Moncloa Palace, Madrid

President of the Government: Good afternoon to you all. I am appearing here following the meeting of the Council of Ministers to report on the decisions taken, and also to assess the government's activity in its first two months. I could say I'll be brief, but in fact I'm going to speak more than usual in a press conference. But as a reward you'll be able to ask me whatever you like, once I conclude this introduction.

I've said it more than once, and I'd like to stress it at the start of my presentation. The vote of no-confidence and the creation of a new government represents a new era in Spanish politics, and I am going to give you three reasons why in my opinion this is so. First, because with the vote of no confidence Spanish democracy restored itself. The judiciary defined the criminal responsibilities in a case relating to illegal funding of what was then the party that governed the country. And given the lack of political accountability on the part of the previous government, the legislature assumed its own responsibilities and decided to present a vote of no confidence. For the first time in the history of our democracy a vote of no confidence was passed that opened the door to a change of government.

The second reason for this new era, this change in epoch of Spanish politics, has to do with the fact that people today see themselves reflected in the government, and that is important. Today, both the government and society are moving at the same pace and in the same direction, sharing the same objectives that can be summed up in two: progress for all and social cohesion. Regardless of which way they may vote, today citizens recognise themselves in their government. They have a government that represents them, that represents a European, ecological and progressive Spain, which I believe is the majority of society; it represents the Spain of talent: politics and technical expertise are not mutually exclusive, and the government is proof of that. This government also represents the plural Spain that is resuming negotiations with regional governments, with the meetings it has held with all the regional presidents to date, and that of course I will conclude by the end of this year; and the organisation of multilateral conferences, sector conferences, which are extremely important for the effective implementation of the policies that affect the everyday life of citizens. I mean public health, education and regional funding.

It is a government that lays claim to and represents a feminist Spain, which took to the streets on 8 March, with the mass demonstration of women in favour of gender equality, and which today sees itself reflected and represented in the government with more female ministers in a Council of Ministers than any country in the OECD. It is a government that represents an open Spain. A government that is consistent, not partisan, prepared to forge large-scale consensuses based on dialogue. It is a government that, as I said in the vote of no confidence, aspires to govern in Parliament and not against Parliament. That is why we have lifted all the vetoes against initiatives that were largely vetoed by the previous conservative majority of the People's Party and Ciudadanos, not so much for economic as for ideological reasons. And it is a government that represents an honest Spain that demands an exemplary administration, which not only obeys the law but also raises the standards of integrity demanded by citizens.

The third reason providing evidence for this change of era is that this government is prepared to act, to advance, to make progress in the Agenda for Change that I presented to the Members of Parliament a few days ago in the Lower House. Because the change of era not only consisted of putting an end to the previous government, to the bad example given by the previous administration; this change of era also means dragging Spain out of its paralysis, its lethargy and thus the beginning of major transformations that Spain needed and needs.

We said that the new government was ready to act, and we are acting, we are making progress in this Agenda for Change, opening up the pathway in the four major transformations that our country needs: economic, social, territorial and also the international dimension, particularly in Europe. On the economic front the basic, fundamental, core approach was to set the consolidation of economic growth as a priority, and also to consolidate and bolster the rate of job creation. The economic forecasts suggest that we are going to end the year with vigorous economic growth of 2.7%, far above the European average, and far too above the major countries in the European Union. As a result, we will create 455,000 jobs by the end of the year. Investment in these first six months has grown by 5%, at over 130 billion euros; our exports grew in the last year by more than 3.5%, which demonstrates the greater competitiveness of the Spanish economy, and in a sector as important as tourism for the Spanish economy, a new record has been set for arrivals in June, at 8.5 million tourists.

Confidence in our economy is also certified by the fact that in these two months of the government the risk premium (against the German Bund) stands at around 100 basis points, even below the average figure for these last four years, which was around 116 basis points. So we have growth, competitiveness, investment, exports, confidence.

We proposed that growth should be distributed between workers and business, and this is what I told the social stakeholders I met with twice in just over two months; and the Ministry of Employment and the government as a whole also transmitted our support for an improvement in wages and in the minimum wage.

We said that our priority was, and is, to fight for quality and dignity in work, and thus to fight labour exploitation and job inequality; and at the last Council of Ministers we approved the Master Plan for Dignified Work. At this meeting of the Council of Ministers we also approved two major initiatives in this respect. First, a Royal Decree geared to combat the fraudulent use of self-employment, which will uncover in one year, in this year alone, around 40,000 jobs that will be incorporated into the general social security scheme, and thus provide more rights and better cover for the dignified work of thousands of people who today are obviously deprived of it due to the misuse being made of this form of employment.

Second, also related to this aspect, the Council of Ministers today has presented and has approved a Royal Decree that will provide cover to those unemployed workers, particularly women (75% of this measure is linked to unemployed women) who are particularly vulnerable and have left the Extraordinary Employment Activation Programme. Our commitment was not only focused and is focused on job creation, on dignified work, on combating job inequalities, combating labour exploitation; our commitment is also to quality public employment that guarantees public services are at the level demanded by our citizens; and we have complied with the commitment you are all aware of to raise wages. At last Friday's Council of Ministers meeting, with the prior agreement of the trade unions, we announced the biggest offer of public-sector employment in the ten years since 2008, with a total of 30,844 new public-sector jobs.

Another of the key goals we pointed to in this Agenda for Change is that progress would not be secure if growth and the environment are not reconciled, without fostering energy transition, and we have laid the foundations for the recovery of self-sufficiency in energy, for driving forward the new renewable energies and committing ourselves even more firmly to the 2030 Agenda set by the United Nations. We said that we would support science and industry, and also culture and the agri-food industry so that they would also be drivers of growth, and not only construction and tourism; in this Council of Ministers we have planned significant aid for progress in science and the film industry.

Finally, we have proposed to the House as a whole a path to stability that responds to a twin purpose: healthier public finances and a stronger Welfare State. What the government is proposing to the House is a twin path to stability; economic stability but also social stability.

This is the government's proposal, for which we are working, and will work; and which we will offer to the House as a whole in September. We are going to do so among other reasons because it is a just cause; we are not doing so simply out of pig-headedness, but because we consider it is a just cause, a cause that benefits the working middle class who need and demand a strong Welfare State, with improved public healthcare, public education, long-term care, which has been one the great neglected items during these years of the People's Party government, social services, active employment policies, compliance with the cross-party State Pact to Combat Gender-based Violence - and I'll talk about this later - and, of course, a boost to science and to the ecological transition.

The government's proposal is, I repeat, to offer the House, and the Spanish people represented there as a whole, stability on two fronts: economic stability and social stability; it is a path that, I hope, will extend to the budget we will present for the consideration and approval of the House, and which will, we hope, be implemented in 2019. The government believes, in this respect, that growth that does not reach the middle classes and workers is no use; we must grow to redistribute and redistribute to grow, and thus secure our Welfare State.

This philosophy of securing our Welfare State is what explains and underpins the Royal Decree offering grants and aid for study for the year 2018/19, which was approved at the last meeting of the Council of Ministers, focused on the need to help students from the least advantaged families, above all families or children who are victims of gender-based violence, and on increasing assistance to grant recipients from families with low incomes. This idea of strengthening our Welfare State is what lies behind the Royal Decree-Law on universal public health, which recovers health assistance for all without excluding anyone; and this is also the philosophy that lies behind the approval of the VECA programme to address the emergency situation of what is a tough and unacceptable reality, that of infant poverty, precisely now that the schools are closed, to guarantee food and leisure to our children, to the 29% of the population of children at risk of child poverty.

Today, the Council of Ministers has also approved a Royal Decree-Law that in my opinion is very important. A year on from when the House approved the cross-party State Pact to Combat Gender-based Violence - and you are well aware of this because you have followed the events - it has been the collectives, above all feminists, that have denounced the non-compliance with the cross-party State Pact to Combat Gender-based Violence. I am not only referring to economic resources, but also to everything that is represented by all the legal modifications that have to be implemented and are the product of this basic agreement.

Well, what we have now done is to complete the transfer of 120 million euros to the local councils and regional governments to fight this scourge and we have approved a Royal Decree-Law that adopts the most urgent measures for the implementation of the cross-party pact reached in both houses last year. And we have done so within a period of only two months. Not only have we made the necessary budget modifications to make explicit through financial contributions this government's commitment to comply and ensure compliance with the cross-party State Pact to Combat Gender-based Violence, but we are also going to implement many of the legal changes that were also reflected and set out in this cross-party pact.

I have explained to you the main idea, which is to secure the public system of pensions and our system covering long-term care. On 27 July, as you know, there was an additional delayed payment to around 9.5 million pensioners. This payment compensates the difference between the increment of 0.25% made in January this year and approved in the budget of 1.6% for all pensions, and that amounts to 3% for minimum pensions. And in making clear this government's commitment to our pensioners, to those who have retired, I do not want to forget the improvement in widowhood pensions that was a commitment largely postponed by the previous government, and that once more this government has implemented in only a few months of its term of office.

So our idea is to secure the system. This will be the verb, the action, with which we will protect our Welfare State. We are going to secure public education, secure long-term care, secure pensions and we are also going to secure the public health system.

As I mentioned to you, the third of the core elements of the Agenda for Change is territorial cohesion. This is the time to forge consensuses, agreements such as those to which we all committed before our citizens. If I may digress a little, this is the point of view with which the government addressed the renewal of the board of Radiotelevisión Española (public Spanish TV and radio), and achieved the support of a large section of the parliamentary parties in the House, with the appointment of Rosa María Mateo as sole director of the corporation until the completion of the renewal process through selection by merit of the new Board of Directors. And the government believes something that I am convinced that Spanish people as a whole know, accept and support, and that is that it is good that public institutions as essential as Radiotelevisión Española are governed by prestige. And Rosa María Mateo, in the opinion of this government, has this prestige. So in our opinion, this concludes a dark period and opens up the hope that an institution that is, at the end of the day, part of the heritage of our society as a whole, recovers the prestige it has lost.

And, returning to the matter of territorial cohesion, this is also the guiding spirit - that of dialogue, consensus - behind all the meetings that I have held so far with the regional presidents: the Basque Country, Catalonia, Galicia, Andalusia, Asturias, Cantabria, in a round that will conclude before the end of the year, with each and every one of the regional presidents. This is also the guiding spirit behind the 18 sector meetings we have held. I think it is important to stress this, because if we compare it with what other governments in five, six, seven months in office have done, never before have 18 sector meetings been held in only two months with each and every one of the regional governments to talk about issues that affect citizens. And this is the spirit behind the implementation of the bilateral committees such as that which met this week under Article 183 of the Statute of Catalonia, between this government and the Regional Government of Catalonia. It is a committee that - as you know, because you have reflected it in the media - has inexplicably not met for seven years. This is work that is beginning and that we hope will bear fruit in what remains of the year to the end of December, and that will give continuity to the meeting held yesterday in Barcelona.

What do I mean by that? That we have the instruments to articulate consensuses, that we have the channels and, what is most important, that this government has the firm will to engage in dialogue to improve our country's territorial cohesion, a will that is, again, enshrined in one of the agreements we have reached in the Council of Ministers to give a new boost to investment in the corridor of the Mediterranean Arc.

The fourth of the core elements of the Agenda for Change is summed up in the international area, in the area of the European Union. Europe is also our motherland - at least that is what the government believes; and although it sounds a hackneyed phrase, and the people who are watching us through the social and mainstream media already know it, it is only with a strong Europe that we can resolve many of the challenges we have at global level.

For the government, strengthening Europe means giving it effective and fair instruments to improve, for example, the management of migratory flows. On this issue what I would like to say is that the action of 'Aquarius', the mass social support given by the people to the government's decision to offer a secure port for the arrival of the 'Aquarius', not only demonstrates the solidarity of the Spanish people, but their social awareness that we are faced with a challenge that transcends us, that transcends borders, that demands a response and a common approach by the European Union as a whole.

This does not mean that the Government of Spain does not have a migratory policy. It does. And in this respect, I can tell you that the Council of Ministers has taken measures, very important measures: it will create a single command structure for operational coordination. I repeat, we are going to create a single command structure for operational cooperation between the State law enforcement agencies on the border and in the Strait of Gibraltar. It is a single operational command, because the political decisions will obviously be taken by the politicians in charge. This single command will focus the coordination and monitoring of all the actions carried out or linked to illegal immigration and the mechanisms needed for the effective use of all the human and material resources available, as well as the swift and appropriate transfer of information related to immigration, optimising resources and the results of all the actions under way that allow collaboration to prevent vessels with immigrants from leaving their countries of origin, and prevent the unexpected arrival of vessels in Spain.

This single authority will act in accordance with the national and international legislation in force, with the agreements entered into in the matter of maritime security, for saving human life at sea, protecting the lives of migrants and respecting their dignity. Apart from, obviously, the creation and constitution of this single operational command, which, I repeat is a faithful reflection of what occurred in 2006 during the crisis of the boats in the Canary Islands. We are going to work towards closer cooperation and dialogue with the Kingdom of Morocco, and we are going to push through an emergency plan of 30 million euros to the end of the year to improve the care provided on the beaches, extend humanitarian aid, and for a new reception, emergency and transfer service. And on this point, I would like to thank the European Commission - also because today the commissioner for these matters is visiting Madrid - and the EU institutions for the announcement that it is unblocking funds for a country that is a friend of Spain, namely Morocco, and that is also fundamental for the regulation and supervision of migratory flows.

Returning to Europe, the other two major challenges to which the Government of Spain wants to contribute are: first, the culmination of Economic and Monetary Union, and this is what I explained to Chancellor Merkel and President Macron; and second, the construction of the social pillar. In fact, I have already appeared here with the President of the French Republic to talk about the social pillar. There are five major Directives now on their passage through the European Parliament linked to improving employment standards in Europe. And in fact yesterday, in my conversation with the rotating President of the European Union, who as you know is the Austrian Chancellor, I expressed the desire of the Government of Spain that these five major Directors linked to improving employment standards of all the workers in the European Union should be approved before the end of the year.

Two summits that I do not want to forget to mention, and that are important for our country, are that on interconnections in Lisbon, with France and Portugal; and of course, the NATO-European Union summit to foster a closer European defence policy.

To sum up - and I am coming to an end: it is a change of era. That is what the vote of no confidence and the construction of a new government meant. A change of era. Reclaiming a healthy democracy, a democracy that must be more exemplary. A democracy that, in fact, must become consolidated in each and every one of the corners of our country and that must also extend to the Valley of the Fallen. And it will do so. But, as I was saying, it is a change of era, the reclaiming of a healthy democracy, progress, and pulling our country out of its lethargy and paralysis to implement this Agenda for Change that I proposed to the Lower House of Parliament and that is linked to the economy, to social issues, to territorial cohesion and to international politics. With an open, non-partisan government, with technical and political qualifications, representing a society that as a majority considers itself feminist and ecological, progressive and European, liberal in the defence and in the establishment of its freedoms, and socialist in the defence and establishment of its rights. After seven years of lethargy, Spain does not have a minute to lose. I believe that the facts support this government. This government is making progress.

It's no small thing we have done in two months, but we still have a lot to do. And we still have a lot to do because the causes that this government supports are just causes: the cause of the businesspeople who struggle to make their businesses grow; the cause of the workers who demand dignity and non-discrimination in their working conditions and wages; the cause of public-sector workers, and on this question, on this point, I would like to express the government's explicit recognition of the State law enforcement agencies, who are now acting in hot spots and obviously guaranteeing the security and safety of all. It is the cause of the pensioners, who want to secure the public pension system. It is the cause of our children, of the teachers who also want to secure the system of public education. It is the cause of our health professionals, our social service professionals, who are so important when it comes to detecting and anticipating the cases of gender-based violence, in the case of both women and children. And it is the cause of the next generations who demand something that has not been guaranteed for them: a habitable and sustainable planet. It is the cause of our fisheries sector, of our agri-food sector. It is the cause of repopulation. It is the cause of reclaiming our culture, science and industry. And it is the cause of social and territorial cohesion. It is the cause, in short, of our citizens who had to leave Spain due to a lack of opportunities and who now want to return, particularly the youngest; it is the cause of a Europe that is defined by the values of revolutionary France: liberty, equality and fraternity; and in particular for those who come from very difficult, very tough conflicts and who also need the support and hope that can be granted by Europe.

These are our causes. The government's Agenda for Change, with a clear and defined roadmap until the end of this term of office. A clear and, as I say, defined roadmap until the end of our government, to which we dedicate ourselves with determination but also with humility, with dialogue - because we know that we cannot do it alone - and thus with the desire for consensus, without losing a minute, being aware that by achieving these goals we also guarantee the welfare and progress of our society.

That is what I would like to tell you, and of course I am now available for your questions. If you don't mind, the State Secretary for Communication will put all your questions in order, and of course I will be delighted to answer each and every one of your questions.

Q: Thank you. Good afternoon. José Miguel Blanco, from the EFE Agency. Given the CIS data released yesterday, are you going to resist the temptation not to call elections in the medium term and to survive with this idea of serving out your time in office? And another question: from what you say I deduce that in the end the Royal Decree to exhume Franco has finally not been approved; whether the idea is to do so on the 24th, at the next Council of Ministers, following the holidays, and when do you believe this exhumation can be carried out? Thank you.

President of the Government: Let's see. With respect to the last of the questions in relation to the Valley of the Fallen and the exhumation of the dictator, I will tell you what I have said so far: we're going to do it, we are going to do it very soon. But look, if we've waited 40 years, we can wait a few more days or weeks. What is important is that it should be done with all the guarantees in place, and that is what the government is doing. But the political decision has been made. What the Government of Spain will do is - and this also has to be recognised as the work of Parliament - comply with and ensure compliance with a mandate from the Lower House of Parliament, which as a majority determined that the dictator should be exhumed from the Valley of the Fallen; and the government will comply with this mandate and also comply with the commitment I assumed myself in the vote of no confidence, and in my appearance before the Lower House as well.

And in relation to the first of the questions: survive, no; make progress, yes; transform, yes. I believe it is very important to be aware, because I believe that there are some political agents who are not yet fully aware of what has happened after the vote of no confidence. There has been a change of era in Spanish politics and this change of era is not only to reclaim a much more exemplary democracy, but above all and more than anything, it means to transform and pull Spain out of its paralysis and lethargy in which the previous conservative majority had plunged Spanish politics. And on a number of fronts. So we have an agenda for transformation. We want to implement it through dialogue and with the consensus of all the political players. And this government does not govern by opinion polls. I did not do so when I was leader of the opposition and much less so now that I am President of the Government. What I am going to do is serve the general interest and not any party interests that I may have: in this case, with respect to a possible improvement in our electoral prospects because that is what the opinion polls may say.

In any event, as someone who has been at the receiving end of the opinion polls, let me tell you that, well, it's significant that those who were ahead and are now behind in the polls, are now questioning the same polls that before they pointed to as proof of the good they were doing and the correctness of the political strategy behind their actions. We are much more humble in this respect. We look at the polls from a much more distant perspective. We know that they are a snapshot but, in any case, I also recognise that they encourage us to continue on the path we have undertaken. Because I recall something that I said at the start of my speech, and that is very important: this government does represent a social majority. This government is moving at the same pace, towards the same goal and in the same direction as Spanish society as a whole, and that also implies or is a result of the change of era that has occurred as a result of the vote of no confidence.

Q: Thank you very much, Mr President of the Government. My name is Al Goodman, from CGTN. I heard your comments on the new single operational command with respect to migrants. My question is more general. How does the President of the Government view the arrival of African migrants to Spain this summer and what impact has it had in Spain for good and for ill? Thank you very much.

President of the Government: Migration did not begin with this government: what has begun is a policy on migration. I repeat, migration is something that has been with us, above all in border countries such as Spain, for some years. So what has begun with this government is migration policy, which did not exist until now. What we have done is to push through an emergency plan for more than 30 million euros to deal with a greater flow of migrants as a result of something that was detected by the previous government, but which they did not take notice of, nor of course provide the material and economic resources for, and that is the flow of migrants in the route that is known as the Western Mediterranean.

So we are creating a migratory policy and this migratory policy has four core elements: first, dialogue and cooperation with the countries of origin and transit, in particular with Morocco. But not only with Morocco. The Minister for Home Affairs, the Minister for Foreign Affairs have this week been, for example - and you know it because you have covered their trips - in Mauritania and in Algeria, and in many other countries. Of course, these countries are important for achieving an orderly management of migratory flows in our country.

So, first there is dialogue and cooperation with the countries of origin and transit. Second: border control. The Government of Spain has numerous officers in its different departments who work to the same end, which is to regulate migratory flows, control migratory flows. So what this Council of Ministers meeting has done is create a single command, as was done in 2006 - with some success in fact - and basically what it does is coordinate operationally - not politically, operationally, and I believe that is also very important to make clear in your reports in the media; operationally - everything that has to do with border control. Third, there is humanitarian care. That is why we have implemented an emergency plan.

And fourth, European cooperation. In this respect, I have to tell you that what appears a hackneyed phrase but in fact is very real, and that is, when migrants step on the beach in Tarifa, or in Algeciras, they are not stepping on Spanish soil: they are stepping on European soil. Spain has for some time no longer had external borders, they are European borders, and that is why from the start this government explained at the first European Council meeting in July the need for the European Commission and the EU institutions to provide financial resources to control the borders, to boost dialogue with Morocco and other countries of origin or transit in North Africa.

So these are the four core elements. What I believe is important is what I said at the start: that migration did not begin with this government; what has begun is migration policy. In fact, the same happened when the socialist government came to power in Spain in 2004.

Q: Juanma Romero, from El Confidencial. Good morning, Mr President of the government. I wanted to ask you as well about the question of possibly calling early elections. You just told us that you want to serve out your term of office, but that you want to make progress, not just survive. What for you would be the limit after which it would not be a good idea to continue in government, and thus to call early elections? For example, not being able to pass the budget for 2019? Would that be a threshold perhaps that would make you consider calling elections? And, also, would you in this case consider making them coincide with other elections, if you considered it convenient? With another electoral process already planned?

And continuing with the question asked by my colleague from EFE, I would like to ask you about the issue of the Valley of the Fallen. Have you already decided on what the legal form used by the government to move Franco would be? Would it be a Royal Decree-Law, which would require validation by the Lower House of Parliament? And, to be more precise with respect to the date, we understand that it would be more like September, wouldn't it? Thank you.

President of the Government: Well, with respect to the second of the questions, you will know when we present it. In any event, I don't believe that approval in the Lower House will be a problem, precisely for this matter, because among other reasons what the Government of Spain is doing is complying with a resolution of our country's Parliament.

And with respect to the first of your questions, Juanma, I'm afraid I can't be very explicit about that either. First, if I went to negotiate with the idea that it would not be successful, that would be like a player starting a match saying that the match will be lost. We are going to play the match, and what we want is to offer a path of stability in the budget that does something very important, and that is not only to ensure healthy public finances because that is guaranteed by the path to stability proposed by the Government of Spain, but to reconstruct the Welfare State. The Welfare State needs oxygen and not strangulation, and that is why my wish is for the path of twin stability, economic and social, that is being proposed by the Government of Spain, to have majority backing, above all from the parliamentary parties that are in power in local governments and regional governments. I know that some parliamentary parties are not going to support it, not so much because they are not thinking of their regional presidents, or mayors, but they are probably thanking more along partisan lines, more as an opposition party; but in any event, I appeal to the sense of responsibility of all.

So, whether the votes are easy or difficult in the Lower House, believe me that is not what is most important to this government; what is important to this government is that these votes should be useful for the people as a whole, and that has to do with health, with education, with pensions, with long-term care, with social services, with active employment policies, with science, with education, with industry, with culture.

These are the questions that the government is addressing and it may be difficult; but we knew it was going to be difficult, but difficult does not mean impossible, it's not the same. So, the weakness that I am most concerned about and that this government is concerned about is the weakness of the Welfare State.

Q: Hello. Juan Antonio Nicolay, from Noticias Cuatro. What I would like to know, Mr President of the Government, is in barely two months, you have discovered that you have not been able to repeal the labour reform, and you have also discovered that you will not be able to approve the regional funding, the new model, as was initially expected of you. It is not much time, but have you already discovered something else that you wanted to do and will not be able to carry out due to the limits of your term in office?

President of the Government: It's precisely the opposite. The labour reform will not be repealed, but that does not mean that the Government of Spain will not eliminate a large number of the most damaging articles in the labour reform, and there on its passage through Parliament is Article 42 of the Workers' Statute that deals precisely with subcontracting. There is a clear mandate from the social stakeholders, not only the trade unions but also business, to talk about collective bargaining at a sector level above and in preference to collective bargaining at the level of each business; and labour and wage equality is also on its passage through Parliament. In short, there will be many aspects for improvement, for claims and recovery of employment rights for workers in this country.

So we can't repeal the labour reform because we don't have a parliamentary majority in the Lower House that wants to support it as a whole? OK. But between 0 and 100 there is a huge range of modifications that benefit the workers, their dignity, their wage levels, and this is what the government will be doing.

And with respect to regional funding, the situation is much the same in that case. The Fiscal and Financial Policy Council has started up a working group to continue the debates on the renewal of the system of regional funding, but one thing is clear: how far are we from the regional elections? It is clear that it is more difficult to reach agreements when it is very probable that within a few months the dynamics of the regional governments are more focused on elections than anything else; and that is legitimate, it's reasonable, and it's a matter of common sense. So what the Government of Spain will do is not be inactive; it will make big improvements to the aspects of regional funding - let's hope that we can reach a new system of regional funding before the end of 2019 - but in any event, if we can't achieve this total renewal, what we can't do is remain inactive.

What else? Well, look, the government can transform many policies. One of the things that I have discovered in these two months as President of the Government - today, for example, there is a letter in the newspaper El País to this government, related to the need to protect children from sexual abuse - is that many things can be done, above all to benefit the weakest, and that this government will do.

Q: Good morning. Luis Angel Sanz, from the daily El Mundo. On Monday, I believe, you have an audience with Felipe VI, the King of Spain, at Marivent Palace. I would like to know if you consider that the Head of State should attend, as he did last year, the acts in tribute to the victims of the attacks in Barcelona and Cambrils. And also, what do you think about the veto announced by the Regional Government of Catalonia to participation by the Head of State in any event organised by the Regional Government of Catalonia, and whether you have expressed or transmitted your rejection of this announcement to the Regional Government of Catalonia. I would also like to ask you about the visit you received yesterday here at Moncloa Palace, from the leader of the opposition, who offered the votes of the PP in the Upper House to implement Article 155 again if necessary. So I would like to ask you whether the government is looking at all possible scenarios in Catalonia; whether it is also looking at the possible application of Article 155 again if the law is broken again. And also, what do you think about Mr Casado's proposal to add the crime of holding illegal referendums to the Criminal Code? Thank you.

President of the Government: The anniversary of the Cambrils and Barcelona attacks is, let's say, an anniversary that demands solidarity and respect by all for the victims and their families. And that is what I hope that the 17th and 18th will bring. And the government will certainly be present. I am going to be there. The Head of State is also going to be there. So that's all there is to it. The Head of State will go, the President of the Government will attend, and what we are going to pass on is the solidarity of Spanish society as a whole with the victims and family members of the victims of these terrible attacks. We have done so on many occasions, unfortunately, in our country, but also our continent has suffered the scourge and blow of Jihadi terrorism, and before that of ETA; so the highest institutions, starting with the Head of State, will be present at this demonstration.

With respect to the offer, which I am grateful for, by the Chairman of the People's Party to support Article 155, well, I am grateful because I have always said that what this government is going to do is engage in dialogue, but always with the Constitution in hand. You have heard me talk about Article 155 for months. So if I have to talk again about Article 155, don't worry, we'll talk again about 155 from the educational point of view. It's a constitutional article, a political, federal, article, in the sense that it is the regions in the territorial house that have to share the decision with the Government of Spain, and as a result, I thank the Chairman of the People's Party for this support.

What would I like? Well, I'd like him to support me in everything, as the Socialist Party did when the Government of Spain was in the hands of Mariano Rajoy, and I also believe that one should be consistent, because the consultations were made under the mandate of the People's Party. And there was no proposal. Why? You'll have to ask them. I am grateful for the support, the offer, but, above all, I ask for consistency, and above all, a long-range vision, and ask them to be an opposition that acts for the good of the State, and that they should be loyal, at least on this question, above all on this question, which is Catalonia, above all as loyal as the Socialist Party was to the Government of Spain at the time. And in this context, if it is a political crisis, as you have often heard me say, it has to be resolved politically.

The Government of Spain will in any case apply the law, it will defend the Constitution, it will defend the Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia in the event of possible breaches of it, if they take place, but what I can guarantee is that the Government of Spain does not want to open up any more judicial actions. What it wants is to resolve the situation politically, and I believe that with respect to what the parliamentary People's Party may do in the Lower House, the answer will be offered by the parliamentary Socialist Party. From the government, what I can do is pass on the thanks for this support and an express request that they support us more, that he should support the political solution with a cross-party vision of the crisis for which they do not exactly bear no responsibility, and so they should act consistently, before when in government and now in the opposition.

Q: Hi. I'm Carles Castellnou, from Catalan Television. Thank you, Mr President of the Government. Good morning. I would like to insist on this subject. Yesterday Mr Casado said that he was going to be loyal on some matters, but he also demanded that you should not engage in dialogue precisely with those who want to break up Spain. I deduce from your words that with respect to this application that Mr Casado mentioned of Article 155, perhaps there are reasons for applying it. Do you at the present time not foresee this scenario?

And second, I would like to ask you about the issue of the taxis. Mr Ábalos told us that at this meeting of the Council of Ministers a clear commitment was reached on the part of the government to a solution for the sector, and I am surprised there has been no word of this. Thank you very much, it's very kind of you.

President of the Government: Thank you very much. With respect to the first of your questions, I repeat, the government celebrates, supports, backs, the meeting of the bilateral committee that took place in Barcelona this week. I believe that it is a good starting point. If you want the truth, I was surprised by some of the readings that much of the media has made of this, because this committee, this meeting of the bilateral committee did not imply agreements, it implied setting up committees that are recognised in the Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia, which are to do with funding, with transfers of powers, with appeals on the grounds of non-constitutionality, with investment in infrastructures... That will be implemented through all its working groups, starting in September and until December, when the bilateral committee will meet again.

What do I mean by that? That what was being done this week was to formalise the will of both governments to return to normal institutional relations between the Regional Government of Catalonia and the Government of Spain, and between the Government of Spain and the Regional Government of Catalonia. From my point of view that appears of fundamental political importance. A committee that has not met for seven years has met within two months of the new government taking office and has pledged to activate these four fundamental committees for the everyday welfare of Catalan men and women, whether in favour of independence or not. So it was not a committee designed to reach agreements, but a committee to begin to work on these agreements. And I have always said that this is a crisis that will not, unfortunately, be resolved in either one month, two months or six months, or a year, or two years. It is a crisis that has gone on for more than a decade, and so what will be required is patience, a great deal of patience, not only by the parties involved but also the media; a great deal of education, generosity, and breadth of vision.

So those who do not want dialogue, how do they expect to engage in politics? Precisely those who have firm convictions are those who always want to talk, because they know what their limits are, and we are clear about them: it is the Constitution and the Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia, and based on that we can talk, we can engage in dialogue, there is a great deal of room, there is much that can be done. But I believe that what is most important, the short-term objective of the Government of Spain, and I believe that we share it with the Regional Government of Catalonia, or at least I hope that we do, is to normalise institutional relations for the benefit of the Catalan people, whether they are in favour of independence or not.

I like what the Minister for Territorial Policy said. This government has a project for Spain, and within Spain, for Catalonia. And so to talk about other mechanisms seems to be simply playing into the hands of those who do not want these relations to materialise or come to pass in positive aspects for Catalan society and for the whole of Spanish society.

And with respect to the conflict of the taxis, the proposal made by the Minister for Public Works is to modify the Law on the Regulation of Land Transport so that the regional authorities can regulate the VTCs (hire cars) that provide a service within their region, and if a regional government does not want to impose any specific condition on the VTCs that provide a service in their region, the national law will take effect. This is the plan that the Minister for Public Works, the team from the ministry, has proposed to the sectors involved, in the regional governments as well. Obviously work will be done this month and next month on a solution that we hope allows the coexistence and balance between the taxis and the VTCs.

Q: Thank you very much. Estrella Moreno, Televisión Española. Mr President of the Government, within the context you were referring to, dialogue with the Regional Government of Catalonia, yesterday the leader of the opposition said that he would not let anything get past him in this matter. I would like to know what your interpretation of this is. And Mr Casado also launched a second warning relating to the prisoners who are members of the terrorist group ETA, to their possible move closer to the Basque Country. He said he was completely against it. I don't know if this statement by the Chairman of the PP was the result of some information that you have passed on to him that there was going to be some transfer of prisoners, or, in any case, what your opinion is on this warning with respect to this issue. Thank you very much.

President of the Government: Let's see, with respect to the first of the questions. I am concerned by some of the extreme statements that are being made in recent weeks. I believe that it is not good for conservative parties to compete in radicalism. Proposing political projects based on confronting territories and confronting people depending on their origin or their race, are not the kind of projects Spain needs, I believe. Spain needs union. It needs social and territorial cohesion, and that is where the Government of Spain stands.

What I said in private to Mr Casado and what I tell him in public is that I believe that a party of government, such as the People's Party, that has left government only a few days ago, a few weeks ago, and of which what's more he was the spokesperson, must make a statesmanlike opposition, and there are questions that go beyond, let's say, party interests, that are beyond governments and therefore the action of any government. And that is where matters such as Catalonia lie, on which I also offered cross-party agreement to Mr Casado, without success, or on the question of ETA and the ETA prisoners.

What I ask of Mr Casado on this matter, as on all other matters in politics, is to be consistent, to be consistent with what he has supported and what his party has done when it was in government. And that's all.

Q: Thank you very much, Mr President of the Government. Daniel Basteiro, from El Español. On yesterday's meeting with Mr Casado, I'd like to know what the real relationship is between the President of the Government and the opposition leader, given that we understood that you were going to present him with five possible agreements, and after a three-hour meeting I believe you have not reached any. You have talked about extremists, extremist postures in right-wing parties. I'd like to know if you consider that the People's Party, given the statements of recent weeks, and we've seen that it has been the object of fierce confrontations with the Socialist Party, do you believe that Pablo Casado is an extremist?

And with respect to Catalonia, I would like to know if this agreement or alliance or understanding that there had been until a few months ago between the Socialist Party, the People's Party and Ciudadanos has broken down or remains in place. You applied Article 155 and whether it continues in force or not, in favour of other parliamentary partners such as those you have in the Lower House or in the Regional Government of Catalonia.

And second, you say: make progress and not just survive. I'd like to know if you stand by the words you spoke when you were leader of the opposition, when you demanded that Mariano Rajoy should submit to a vote of no-confidence or elections if the budget was not approved, if what was valid for President of the Government Rajoy is valid for President of the Government Sánchez. Thank you.

President of the Government: Well, with respect to the last question you asked, as Daniel and Juanma did as well, I'll answer the same: I set out to approve the path to stability and to approve the national budget, because I believe it is a just cause and because I believe that the demand of the majority of Spanish society is that if the Spanish economy has been doing well for a number of years, the government's task will be that the Spanish people should do well too. So we set out to approve this path of stability and also to approve the national budget, and we set out with this purpose.

And with respect to the agreements, they are agreements that I offered and also extended to science. It is an agreement that I also believe is important, a cross-party agreement on science. I did not receive a reply. I understand that Mr Casado also needs time and I hope that in the coming months we can see the possibility of reaching some type of agreement.

And with respect to the second question, it is, I repeat a cross-party policy. The People's Party is not unconnected with the situation in Catalonia. It is not unconnected. I believe that we all have to learn the lessons of what has occurred in Catalonia and the extraordinarily exceptional measures that were applied as a result of this rupture. So breadth of vision, learning all our lessons, and I believe that one of them - one that the People's Party has to learn - is that territorial grievances, confrontations of territories or confrontation between people, are not projects that add anything, they are projects that take away, and this society has suffered a great deal during the crisis. It is a society that is still marked by inter-generational, social and gender inequality. I believe that projects that unite are needed, not projects that pull apart. As President of the Government, that is the idea I would pass on to the leader of the People's Party.

Q: Paula de las Heras, from Colpisa. You insist that you have set out with a desire to approve the trend in the deficit and the budget. Given that you have arrived where you have arrived by insisting on "no means no", I imagine that you understand the refusal of the PP to support you on these questions and you know that you will tend to turn to your partners in the vote of no confidence. Well, those partners, who have among other things asked for an amendment to the law on budget stability so that the decision of the Lower House should prevail over the Upper House with respect to the deficit. I would like to know whether you are prepared to carry out this reform; and then I know that you have said that the explanations given by the director of the CNI on the recordings of Corinna appeared adequate, but in 2014 you said: "I want a renewed and exemplary monarchy, one with no prerogatives, such as the principle of inviolability of the King" I'd like to know if you stand by these words. Thank you.

President of the Government: I believe that we have a renewed and exemplary monarchy in the figure of King Felipe VI. And with respect to the head of the CNI and his appearance at the former official secrets committee, I understand that the explanations that the director has given are what they are, we have backed them and he has our support.

And with respect to the first of the questions, the People's Party certainly criticised me for saying "no means no", so if they want, we are also prepared to talk with the People's Party because it affects the path to stability and the budgets of the autonomous regions and local councils governed by the People's Party; but in any event, the explanations given by Mr Casado with respect to the "no" to the path to stability presented by the Government of Spain are not so much these as an ideological question, and the basic ideological question for Mr Casado, or at least that is what I have gathered, not only from my conversation with him but from his public statements to the media. It is that he wants a smaller, leaner Welfare State, in other words he wants to continue to lead the ranking of countries with the weakest Welfare State. We, in contrast, want quite the reverse. We want a stronger Welfare State, one that is established more firmly, because we believe that redistribution and wealth creation go hand-in-hand. And I believe that this is precisely the great lesson to be learned from the economic crisis of 2008, not only in Spain but in the world.

The problem with the economic crisis of 2008 was not the excessive size of the public sector in our country or in the world economy as a whole, it was precisely the lack of public control of certain financial activities that of course entered into speculative territory or speculation. But, well, I've got a little ahead of myself with respect to your question.

We want to offer this path towards economic and social stability to the House as a whole; and I'll tell you one thing, I think that it is wrong that the Upper House should have the capacity to veto a stability that has been approved by the majority of the Lower House. This was a change made by the government of the People's Party with its absolute majority, to which we, if I have to give you my opinion, are opposed.

Q: Good morning, Mr President of the Government. Víctor Ruiz de Almirón, from ABC. I would like to ask you, first of all, regarding a conclusion that emerged from the bilateral meeting this week, as Minister Batet said in a press conference: the government was committed as a government to something that the PSOE had defended, which was the Third Additional Provision of the Statute of Catalonia. I would like to ask you, how could this be compatible with investing in infrastructures according to the gross domestic product in a region such as Catalonia, one of the most powerful of Spain? How can this be made compatible with the principle of territorial solidarity? Don't you believe that it could lead to discontent in other parts of this country that have a deficit in infrastructures - and here I'm thinking of Extremadura?

And then, you have talked a number of times during your appearance about the support from society that you believe this government has and that Spain is progressive and all these values, but I would like to ask you about other Spanish people, those who perhaps could feel themselves disappointed - I don't know if you consider it in this way - or even deceived because you promised to call elections and now you say that you want to serve out your term in office. You also spoke about regional funding, and spoke for example, about not using the votes of separatist parties to get to power. Thank you.

President of the Government: Well, with respect to the first of the questions, I'd like to tell you, Víctor, that we guarantee solidarity between territories; that is the approach of the Ministry of Public Works when it comes to projecting and making forecasts on infrastructures and its investments. I believe also that over these two months the government has been speaking to various regional presidents, both from the Socialist Party and the People's Party, Galicia, Andalusia, to give a few examples, at which the Government of Spain has declared its commitment to comply with the objectives and forecasts, for example for the arrival of the AVE (high-speed train) to Galicia. So with respect to this solidarity, I want you to have no doubt, I'll rid you of it, or at least I hope I will rid you of it with the public commitments I have assumed with these regional governments and their presidents.

With respect to the second of your questions, it may be that I have not explained myself very well, perhaps, in many of my appearances in the Lower House, because I said very clearly that before calling elections what we had to do was to achieve political, economic and social stability, and that is what the Government of Spain is engaged in now. So in my appearance before the Lower House I set out a roadmap I called the Agenda for Change in which the Government of Spain is projecting itself with its action, because, as I say, the change in era that has occurred as a result of the vote of no-confidence is not only related to reclaiming democracy so that the government can assume its political responsibilities with respect to a court judgement that affects the headquarters in Calle Génova, but also drag Spain out of its paralysis and lethargy in which it had been submerged by the previous government, and this paralysis and lethargy is very clear. It is reflected in a set of laws, or bills that had been processed and approved by a parliamentary majority and were vetoed by the People's Party and by Ciudadanos, by their parliamentary parties in the Lower House.

So look, if we are planning to make progress and see out this term in office, the first action this government has done is to lift the veto from all the bills that were being vetoed by the previous government. So I believe that this government is being clear, transparent and consistent. Look, I must have made a mistake in expressing myself; you are suggesting the contrary, as it is precisely other conservative political parties that are proposing these early elections. The government has its roadmap. We're not going to waste a minute, we're going to continue working, we're going to continue acting, making progress, and when our term ends, of course there will be elections.

My question is, what are these political parties going to do until the elections? Are they going to offer their support to the Government of Spain on matters that they consider fundamental, such as science, infrastructures, changing the labour regulations to the benefit of workers and reconstructing the Welfare State? Or are they simply going to stay inactive, without moving, and vote against? Well that's a legitimate opposition strategy and what the Government of Spain will do as a result is, I insist, speak to all the parliamentary players to try to push through its laws. Whether it is difficult or easy to push through a law is, I repeat, not what concerns us most; what concerns us most as a government is that the laws are useful for the welfare and progress of the people.

And with respect to regional funding, I would say much the same. You can do many things in politics. The Government of Spain is offering in the path towards stability a greater margin and greater budgetary oxygen to the regional governments for their budgets - 2.4 billion euros. We have set up a working group to continue talking about the renewal of the system of regional funding, and we have proposed to the regional governments to improve exceptionally their regional funding for a number of matters. So, I repeat, between all or nothing, what this government does, is act. It does what it is possible do through Parliament. If we had a different parliamentary reality, we would do more things, but this is, let's say, a political action for which the government and Parliament are co-responsible.

The government sets out a path towards stability where it sets itself, or we set ourselves, an improvement of one tenth, and to the regional governments we give two tenths. If Parliament, with the parliamentary groups that represent the political parties that govern the autonomous regions and local councils, decide that this should not be the path towards stability, they will have to ask and explain afterwards to their neighbours why they did it.

Q: Irene Castro, from eldiario.es. Good morning, Mr President of the Government. Quim Torra has said that governments tend to resign if their budgets are not approved. I would like to know if you share that statement. And then, you said that there were consultations in Catalonia during the governments of the PP, specifically you said two. Can you assure us that there will be no referendum in Catalonia during your term in office, an attempt at a referendum such as on 1 October? And finally, you also said that now we have an exemplary monarchy. I would like to know whether the monarchy of King Juan Carlos was not. Thank you.

President of the Government: It was, it was. It was as well, Irene.

With respect to the second of your questions, which has to do with the opinion of Quim Torra, the President of the Regional Government of Catalonia, I respect his opinion, but, I repeat, this government has set out to approve its budget and approve the path to stability.

And the second of the questions had to do with... That question was in the sense that those who are now asking to make it illegal to call these consultations did not do so when they were in government. So the reflection that I make regarding political consistency, and what the government does is explain that we want to find a political solution to the political crisis in Catalonia. And I also said so in Parliament, and I repeat it here again in the press room. The Government of Spain is aware that the solution in Catalonia, which will not be immediate, will require a vote by all the Catalan people. What is the disagreement that we have with the parties supporting independence and with the Regional Government of Catalonia? That what we want is to vote for an agreement that represents 80% of Catalan society and the formulation and what they are proposing, does not represent 80% of Catalan society. It is therefore a break, a breach, not an agreement that joins together. But that is the basic disagreement that we have. I hope to be able to convince them in the medium term.

Q: Good afternoon, Mr President of the Government. I would like to ask you from a more personal point of view. What have been the worst moments you have experienced in these two months of your government? And was one of these moments to have to make a change in your government in the first week; or what other disagreeable surprises have you suffered?

President of the Government: I haven't suffered any.

Thank you very much.

(Transcript edited by the State Secretariat for Communication)

Non official translation