The leader of Podemos and Minister of Social Rights confirms that Spanish military spending is already at “record levels” and calls for priority to be given to social investment. In response, the executive branch’s spokeswoman asks her partner to “reconsider his stance” as there is war in Ukraine.
The leader of Podemos and Minister of Social RightsIone Belarusconfirmed that the stability of the Spanish government is “guaranteed” despite the disagreements over the increase in the military budget, and defended the desirability of a “substantive debate” with the PSOE on this issue, as “every euro allocated to military spending is one euro less for health care or public education”.
In statements to TVE, he stressed that United We Can is determined to complete the legislature and that the aim is to convince its partner, in forums such as the coalition agreement monitoring committee, of the need to prioritize social policy in the light of General Budgets, as he believes military spending is already at “record levels” and “not exactly low”.
In particular, it emphasized that budget expenditures for Defense, which hover around 1.2% of GDP, do not reflect all investments in this area, as they are increased by formulas such as extensions of extraordinary appropriations, such as the one approved yesterday at 1,000 million euros and that United We Can doesn’t like it, through emergency funds, which then don’t go into public accounts.
Looking forward to the next meeting of the Coalition Oversight Commission requested yesterday by the second vice president, Yolanda Díaz; The Minister of Social Rights has explained that they will convey the importance of “realignment” with the citizens to the executive by addressing societal priorities, such as fighting inflation at a “complex” moment for the legislature.
Meanwhile, the Minister for Territorial Policy and spokesman for the Spanish government, Elizabeth Rodriguezhas said that it is “good” for the members of the executive to speak, but that it is better to explain what they are doing and what measures are being taken to mitigate the effects of the crisis, because “who must listen is the citizen.”
In statements to RNE, he downplayed the importance of the request to urgently convene the coalition pact monitoring table, for which no date has yet been set. Rodríguez has insisted that the matter went through “all the formulas” before reaching the cabinet table so that nothing had to be negotiated.
Rodríguez recalled that there is war in Ukraine and that at the time Spain decided to “stand on the side of the attacked state” with the rest of the EU and strengthen the alliance “and we must bear the consequences”.
The spokeswoman recommended United We Can “rethink its approach” as it is compatible to increase defense spending and maintain the welfare state, as the 2% growth is for 2029 and “there are ways to adjust it” .
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Source: EITB
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
