The Government of Spain presents its proposal for a State Pact to tackle the climate emergency

Moncloa Palace, Madrid

The Minister for Treasury, María Jesús Montero, along with Ministers for Education, Vocational Training, and Sports, Pilar Alegría, and for Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge, Sara Aagesen, at the press conference (Pool Moncloa/José Manuel Álvarez)

The Third Vice-President of the Government of Spain and Minister for Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge, Sara Aagesen, gave details of the proposal for a State Pact to tackle the climate emergency, which was announced yesterday by the President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sánchez.

The minister stressed that the government wants to build a broad agreement based on unity, coordination and consensus in order to provide an effective response to "the great challenge that lies ahead of us". Furthermore, she pointed out that the pact is not being built from scratch because the government has been developing an active policy on the matter since 2018.

In fact, the pact comes in addition to actions such as the declaration of climate emergency in 2020, the approval of the Law on Climate Change and Energy Transition, the investments aimed at ecological transition included in the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan and more specific actions, such as those developed in Doñana or in the Mar Menor.

Sara Aagesen argued that it is "a necessary pact in a particularly vulnerable Spain" because climate change is accelerating and the Mediterranean basin is warming 20% faster than the global average. She also cited the DANA of late 2024 and the fires of last August as a "palpable reality in our country" of this acceleration.

Ten proposals for action, prevention and impact preparedness

The Third Vice-President of the Government of Spain and Minister for Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge, Sara Aagesen, during the press conference after the Council of Ministers | Pool Moncloa/José Manuel Álvarez

The government is aware of the need for forest management that contributes to the conservation and productive use of forests. Aagesen specified that forests need to be reforested with more fire-resilient species and sustainable use needs to be achieved.

The minister also indicated that water is essential: "We need a countrywide response to water resilience". New hydrological plans that take into account the climate variable, territorial planning and resilient infrastructures are needed to deal with both droughts and floods.

Another proposal is the protection of citizens from heat waves and extreme temperatures, for which the Executive proposes the creation of a network of climate shelters in towns and cities, the establishment of safe working environments and defence mechanisms for the most vulnerable population.

The Executive considers that the rural world is a fundamental ally in the fight against climate change, and therefore proposes promoting a financial, fiscal and service framework that encourages actions such as the bioeconomy, forestry, regenerative agriculture and nature restoration.

The minister added that the countryside and the primary sector are also fundamental for adaptation and mitigation, with practices such as agroforestry and extensive livestock farming.

According to Aagesen, the government plans to create two funds to address the magnitude of the challenge: the first with national and regional resources to prevent climate risks at the local level, and the second to respond to extreme events. "We want to facilitate and accelerate the arrival of aid to each and every one of those affected by these emergencies and rebuild in the best possible way, in a resilient manner," she said.

Another initiative outlined by the minister is to protect those who protect us by providing forest fire services, brigadiers, emergency services and other specialised bodies with the best resources: "Professionalise these bodies, ensure that they are equipped 365 days a year and have the best working conditions, reinforce their medical services, their psychosocial support after disasters, and, in addition, we propose the creation of a new technical body for risk prevention and Civil Protection".

The government also plans to create the State Agency for Civil Protection and Emergencies as an instrument for institutional coordination and decision-making. In addition, it will promote training in emergencies and civil protection in non-university education centres to instil a culture of prevention and reaction in the population.

The latest proposal is to promote and accelerate the ecological transition at European level by requiring Europe to be more ambitious in terms of targets and funding to address the climate emergency, the minister said.

Consultation and dialogue process

Sara Aagesen reiterated that the offer presented today comes after a process of consultation, listening and dialogue with all political groups, all administrations and all types of social organisations. She also announced that both the President of the Government of Spain and each of the ministers responsible for the matter will hold meetings with the main social, professional and technical actors to continue to develop the pact. In addition, the issue will be discussed at the Conference of Presidents and discussed with France, Portugal and the European Commission.

"We need to think beyond legislatures: climate change actions and policies must be State policies that allow us to anticipate, to be better prepared, in a coordinated and united manner", concluded the minister.

Partial cancellation of regional debt

The First Vice-President of the Government of Spain and Minister for Treasury, María Jesús Montero, at the press conference after the Council of Ministers | Pool Moncloa/José Manuel Álvarez

The Council of Ministers, in the first round, addressed the Draft Bill of the Organic Law on Exceptional Financial Sustainability Measures for the Autonomous Communities under the Common Regime. The First Vice-President of the Government of Spain and Minister for Treasury, María Jesús Montero, explained that this is the instrument that will allow a significant part of the debt to be cancelled for all of these communities. Specifically, the regulation will make it possible for the State to assume 83.252 billion euros of regional debt. The Minister for Treasury said that the measure is possible thanks to the good performance of the economy and the fulfilment of the fiscal consolidation targets.

María Jesús Montero explained that the cancellation will benefit all the communities under the common regime, whether or not they have debt with the Autonomous Liquidity Fund (FLA). The communities, she pointed out, will be able to use the additional resources for health, education, housing or dependency, for example. She also stressed that the draft bill is "fully consistent" with all the initiatives that the Executive has adopted since 2018 to support the autonomous communities, especially in times of crisis: "Never before have they had so many resources as they have with the governments of Pedro Sánchez".

Strengthening the welfare state and community autonomy

The First Vice-President stressed that the measure benefits all the territories and allows three main objectives to be met. Firstly, the savings in interest payments on the debt will amount to between 6.6 and 6.7 billion euros, which the autonomous communities will be able to allocate to strengthening the welfare state. Secondly, cancellation will translate into more financial autonomy and thus political autonomy by making it easier for communities to finance themselves on the financial markets. The third objective is to compensate the communities that have become more indebted because under the current model they have invariably been financed below the average.

In addition, the draft bill favours greater debt cancellation for communities that have used their fiscal powers to raise personal income tax over the last decade. "It is an inconsistency that there are communities that lower taxes for their citizens and yet protest and demand more funding from the Government of Spain", argued María Jesús Montero.

Equity and voluntariness in debt cancellation

The First Vice-President of the Government of Spain and Minister for Treasury, María Jesús Montero, at the press conference after the Council of Ministers | Pool Moncloa/José Manuel Álvarez

The methodology for calculating the debt cancellation figures, as the minister explained, is based on the premise that the autonomous communities were poorly financed in the period following the financial crisis. The amount of revenue foregone is estimated at 80.31 billion euros. This amount is distributed among the territories mainly according to the adjusted population criterion, which implies an average remission of 19% of the autonomous regions' debt. For all communities that fall below this average, the remission is raised to 19% to avoid grievances.

Once equalised at that percentage, two adjustments are made to the calculations to reinforce equity. Firstly, it identifies the region with the highest debt cancellation per inhabitant (Valencian Community, at 2,284 euros) and raises to this level the debt cancellation of the regions worst treated by the financing model between 2010 and 2022. The second adjustment benefits the communities that have raised personal income tax within the framework of their competences during this period.

The Minister for Treasury stressed that the debt cancellation process will be voluntary, so that, once the law has been approved by the Lower House of Parliament, a bilateral agreement will have to be established with each autonomous community. "Who is going to say no to having part of their debt forgiven?", Montero asked. The Vice-president also stressed that the measure is complementary to the reform of the regional funding system, which the government will continue to work on "with a proposal that once again benefits all the territories".

Headquarters of the National Centre for Volcanology

The Minister for Education, Vocational Training and Sports and Government Spokesperson, Pilar Alegría, during her speech at the press conference after the Council of Ministers | Pool Moncloa/José Manuel Álvarez

The Minister for Education, Vocational Training and Sports and Government Spokesperson, Pilar Alegría, has reported on the approval by the Council of Ministers of the start of the procedure to determine where the headquarters of the National Centre for Volcanology, the entity responsible for promoting scientific research, will be located. An entity which, according to Alegría, will allow for national coordination in this field.

The centre will have the participation of the General State Administration - through the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities - and the Autonomous Community of the Canary Islands, which will contribute 50% of the resources. The agreement to determine the physical location of this entity shall include a memorandum detailing the nature, functions, the approximate number of people who will provide services, as well as any other information relevant to the choice.

Current affairs: President's trip to the UK

The Government spokesperson ended her speech by recalling the official trip to the United Kingdom that the President of the Government of Spain will be making this week. Pilar Alegría, who described the meeting as "very important", stressed that Pedro Sánchez's trip to London comes "at a time of renewed momentum in the bilateral relationship between the two countries", following the "historic" agreement between the European Union and the United Kingdom on Gibraltar.

This visit by the head of the Executive, with a "strong economic component", aims to "continue strengthening relations with a friendly partner country", Alegría concluded.

Non official translation