Pedro Sánchez: "Europe must wake up once and for all" and "move from words to action"

Catalonia Congress Palace, Barcelona

The President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, during his speech at the opening of the 40th Annual Meeting of the Cercle d'Economia (Pool Moncloa/Borja Puig de la Bellacasa)

The President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, stated that "Europe must wake up once and for all", "take control of its destiny, and move from words to action". His words came during the opening of the 40th Annual Meeting of the Cercle d'Economia held at Barcelona's Palau de Congressos de Catalunya, entitled "Europe: wake-up call?". The meeting was also attended by the Minister for Industry and Tourism, Jordi Hereu, and the President of the Generalitat de Catalunya, Salvador Illa. Coinciding with this week's commemoration of Europe Day and the 75th anniversary of the Schuman Declaration, Pedro Sánchez pointed out that Europe must act, and that "it is not a question of whether or not we should respond to the new geopolitical context, but of how we do it".

The priority in the short term is to respond to the tariff crisis, since "that threat has not dissipated", warning that "there are many harmful, unilateral tariffs in place" and "Washington keeps saying it will impose the rest if there is no agreement within 90 days". He added that "Europe does not want a trade war because the biggest deficit is trade that does not exist", making it clear that "we will always be in favour of dialogue, negotiation, international trade and collaboration". In his words, "we are prepared to face any scenario, even the worst", and "we will not stand idly by and we have muscle", referring to the fact that Europe is the world's largest trading power.

Regarding the tariff dispute, he pointed out that the Government of Spain was the first in Europe to approve an aid package, the Trade Response and Relaunch Plan, endowed with €14.1 billion for companies and workers who may be affected by the trade war, something that "the international community, Europe, companies and workers recognise".

In this respect, he made a new appeal to the parliamentary groups to validate the Response Plan in the Lower House of Parliament this Thursday: "I ask you not to turn your backs at this critical time, but to stand up for your country, your companies and your workers. Catalonia, Spain and Europe have every reason to believe in their strengths. We are the largest area of prosperity, democracy, freedom, well-being and security in the world. We still live in the most developed place on the planet. There is no better place to be born and to develop a life project, but we have to believe this if we want to be the benchmark for the new global order. Europe must take its destiny into its own hands and move from words to action. Time is short," he added.

Reduced bureaucracy, scaling up, funding and own capacities

Group photo of the 40th Annual Meeting of the Cercle d'Economia | Pool Moncloa/Borja Puig de la Bellacasa

All the above in a context in which "the fundamentals of the Spanish economy are very solid", international markets and investors are backing Spain, and "the data support us". Proof of this include the Government's updated growth forecast of 2.6% this year and 2.2% in 2026, and being the only major advanced economy that has not had its forecast cut by the IMF, despite geopolitical uncertainty. In addition, Spain has informed the European Commission that for the fifth consecutive year we have complied with the expenditure rule by presenting a computable expenditure €7.3 billion below the target committed to with Europe, and has expressed its conviction that the national security system data to be published tomorrow "will confirm that Spain is the engine of job creation in the Eurozone". Spain generated 40% of all growth last year, and the Commission says that this year Spain will generate 40% of all employment in the eurozone.

"These data are the best endorsement to increase our weight in Brussels". He pointed out that "we are leading the main debates of this decade and we are on the EU scorecard", in reference to the Recovery Plan and the country's responses to the climate emergency, the energy price crisis due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and the tariff war. Referring to the Letta and Draghi reports, he stressed that "Europe will only have a future if it deepens integration and is committed to strategic autonomy". For this reason, he stressed that "it is time to take action", undertaking reforms at European level, "reducing bureaucracy, integrating administrative processes and making European institutions more agile, with more decisions taken by the qualified majority, abandoning national vetoes, and making progress in deepening the union" to respond to the great challenges we face.

He called for scaling up, helping SMEs to grow and large companies to become more competitive, and for reviewing the European competition policies of recent years, stressing the need for public and private financing and a move towards a "true capital market union" and a new Multiannual Financial Framework with new mechanisms, including the European Competitiveness Fund. He also underlined the need for home-grown capacities and partnerships with third countries or trade blocs, such as Africa and the Middle East, as well as with China, Mercosur and India.

He also defended the multilateral system: "Europe is called upon to fill the gap left by other retreating powers, and Spain is helping to find solutions to the great global challenges we face". He said that "the International Conference on Financing for Development in Seville at the end of June "is the best example of this commitment". He also made it clear that "we will not sacrifice a single cent of development aid or diplomacy to pay for security and defence", and that "Spain is already doing its part". In fact, on Wednesday the President of the Government will present the Industrial and Technological Plan for Security and Defence in the Lower House of Parliament, adopted a fortnight ago by the Council of Ministers, with which the commitment to reach 2% of GDP in security and defence will be fulfilled by 2025.

Public consultation on BBVA's hostile takeover bid for Sabadell

The President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, with the President of the Regional Government of Catalonia, Salvador Illa, during the event | Pool Moncloa/Borja Puig de la Bellacasa

In his speech, Pedro Sánchez referred to BBVA's hostile takeover bid for Banco Sabadell, following the publication of the report by the National Markets and Competition Commission (CNMC) on this operation. He explained that the procedure laid down in the regulations now requires the Government of Spain to decide, within 15 working days, whether the operation should be submitted to the Council of Ministers, which may assess it under the criterion of the general interest.

To take this decision "with all the guarantees", he announced that tomorrow, Tuesday, a public consultation will be opened before the decision is taken, with the aim of gathering the opinion of organisations, citizens and associations. "Our intention and our desire is to help our companies grow, and to increase their volume and competitiveness, but only if it is in the common interest of the country and its citizens," he added.

Reduction of working hours

Pedro Sánchez also urged the Spanish and Catalan employers' associations "not to close their minds" to the initiative to reduce the working day, which the Government will approve tomorrow in the Council of Ministers. He described it as a "social demand that will contribute to improving the productivity and stability of the workforce and, therefore, to making our companies better". In his opinion, the European economy must "maintain its global weight by focusing on human capital and innovation, not on low prices and long hours".

€53 million in new aid to develop advanced technology systems and semiconductors

The chief executive also announced that the Government has today approved the granting of €53 million in aid for the development of advanced technological systems and semiconductors, within the framework of the second call for proposals of the PERTE CHIP. These projects, 16 of them in Catalonia, will mobilise more than €100 million in public-private investment for an "absolutely strategic" sector. "Spain is doing its part. But at European level we need more investment, more trade and less bureaucracy. And, of course, we must not fall for the false prescriptions of the denialists, because the Green Pact and Competitiveness are two sides of the same coin, and the best way to conquer the future", he said.

Electricity crisis

The President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, during his speech at the opening of the 40th Annual Meeting of the Cercle d'Economia | Pool Moncloa/Borja Puig de la Bellacasa

At the beginning of his speech, Pedro Sánchez referred to the "unprecedented and serious" power cut on the Iberian Peninsula a week ago, about which he said that "the Government is working with prudence and rigour to clarify the causes of the incident", reiterating his thanks to the citizens and workers for giving "their best". He said that "Spain responded as the great country" it is, giving "an example of civility, calm and solidarity". He added that "no society in the world would have responded better."

He nevertheless expressed the Government's "firm" will to "leave no stone unturned to find out what caused the incident", assuring that he is working "with prudence and rigour" with the operators to do just this. "Our objective is to strengthen an already robust electricity system, as demonstrated by its rapid recovery, and we are doing so in the general interest, not for any other agenda, reaffirming our determination to continue advancing in the essential energy transition", he concluded.

Non official translation