Pedro Sánchez assures that the next budgets will be "more expansive in social terms"

Lower House of Parliament, Madrid

The President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, along with the First Vice-President, María Jesús Montero, and the Second Vice-President, Yolanda Díaz (Pool Congreso)

The President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, assured the Lower House of Parliament that the approval of the spending cap in the last Council of Ministers, with an 8.5% increase exceeding 210 billion euros, will allow the foundations to be laid for a General State Budget that is "much more expansive in social terms".

"This Government guarantees three things: stability; the capacity for dialogue with parliamentary groups; and results," the president added in his response to the member of the People's Party Parliamentary Group, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, against whom he defended the Executive's "zero tolerance" policy towards corruption cases.

Pedro Sánchez assured that the current budgets "are good for the economy" and recalled the European Commission's growth forecasts, according to which the Spanish economy will grow by 2.9% in 2025 - compared to the European Union average of 1.4% - and has claimed these figures as a "national success". The president also recalled that, for the first time in 20 years, Spain will have a lower public deficit than Germany.

"Coexistence and cohesion" in Catalonia

The leader of the Executive once again defended the government's work in Catalonia in response to questions raised by MP Míriam Nogueras, of the Junts per Catalunya parliamentary group: "We needed to normalise the political, social and territorial situation and that is what we have done over the last seven years," said President Sánchez.

"Objectively speaking, Catalonia is better off today than it was two years ago, and much better off than it was seven years ago", he asserted. To illustrate this improvement, Pedro Sánchez cited measures such as strengthening the National Dependency System, protecting the self-employed and the "eightfold increase" in the resources allocated to housing policies.

The plenary session of the Lower House of Parliament observes a minute of silence in memory of Marcos Vizcaya Retana, parliamentary spokesperson for the PNV during the Transition | Pool Congreso

To these measures, the president added the approval of the Amnesty Law, highlighting its validation by four legal bodies: the Venice Commission, the European Commission, the Constitutional Court and the report by the Advocate General of the European Union. "This is what this government is doing for Catalonia, for Spain, and for Europe: fostering coexistence and cohesion", he concluded.

Support for Basque sport

In response to a question from MP Mertxe Aizpurúa, of the Euskal Herria Bildu Parliamentary Group, regarding the demand for a Basque national team in all sports disciplines, the head of the Executive referred to the 2022 Sports Law, which he described as an "important step" to grant regional federations the possibility of competing internationally "when there is a historical, cultural and social connection in that autonomous community".

In this regard, the president first mentioned the case of Basque pelota, adding that this law also opened the door to international representation for those federations that chronologically precede the state federations, such as surfing in the Basque Country, a sport "from which great advances are expected in the coming years".

Pedro Sánchez stressed that the Government of Spain is actively supporting the international promotion of Basque sport and "will continue working diligently and through dialogue to address the concerns and aspirations of Basque society within the existing legal framework".

Non official translation