Government awards six nationwide licences for free-to-air television

Moncloa Palace, Madrid

The government has agreed to award six licences for digital terrestrial television (DTT), under a system of free-to-air TV broadcasting at a nationwide level.

The Minister for Industry, Energy and Tourism, José Manuel Soria, recalled that the public tender was put out on 17 April for three high-definition frequencies and another three standard definition frequencies. "As from that date, the procedure commences, which is a fully regulated procedure", he declared. After presenting their bids, the Technical Panel of the State Secretariat for Telecommunications analysed and assessed the bids and finally notified their proposal to the successful bidders in order for them to provide additional documentation pursuant to the technical specifications of the tender, explained José Manuel Soria.

The minister stressed that the conditions were "identical" for all the bidders and that "all bids have been assessed under the same criteria". The Council of Ministers has "zero" discretion in this regard, he stated, "because this emanates directly from the Technical Panel and I believe that it is very positive for it to operate in this way".

The successful bidders of the three high-definition channels are Atresmedia Corporación Medios de Comunicación, Mediaset España and Real Madrid Club de Fútbol. The three licences for broadcasting on standard quality channels were awarded to 13 TV, Secuoya and Radio Blanca.

The new channels must start broadcasting within a maximum term of six months as from the granting of the licences, and offer coverage to at least 96% of the population. In order to receive these new channels, installations will not need to be adapted; the television will simply require re-tuning.

Energy Plan

Pool Moncloa / J. M. CuadradoThe government approved the document containing the Energy Plan and the Development Plan for the Electricity Transmission Grid 2015-2020.

The Vice-President of the Government, Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría, asserted that energy planning is "a basic element for the national electricity sector" and indicated that the aim of the document is to guarantee supply, minimise environmental impact, increase interconnections, integrate renewable energies and meet the demand.

For his part, the Minister for Industry, Energy and Tourism remarked that the document is a compendium of all the actions that need to be undertaken in relation to new lines, substations and other facilities throughout the country. He added that this is a series of investments that will be entitled to remuneration "charged, logically, to the system tolls". José Manuel Soria underlined that the main principle of the document is economic and financial sustainability. In this regard, the text contains, on the one hand, the forecast for energy demand over the period 2015-2020 and, on the other hand, a description of all the infrastructures that need to be built.

As regards demand, the document provides for a reduction in final energy consumption in relation to Gross Domestic Product thanks to greater energy efficiency. Another of the hypotheses on which the plan is based is an increase in the weighting of renewable energies and natural gas from among the energy sources that cover the electricity supply.

As regards infrastructures, actions are included both on and off the mainland. José Manuel Soria highlighted that the connection between Spain and France through the Bay of Biscay will increase the degree of interconnectivity to almost double its present level of 2.8%. Moreover, the document provides for two additional interconnections through the Pyrenees, one through Navarre and the other through Aragon, which are yet to be projects of Community interest but are included in the European Union's 10-year plan. The Minister for Industry recalled that these works were promoted by the President of the Government at a summit in Madrid.

New biomass and wind power installations

Pool Moncloa / J. M. CuadradoThe Council of Ministers approved a round of calls for the allocation of the specific remuneration regime for biomass and land-based wind power technology facilities.

José Manuel Soria explained that one of the essential objectives of the government's energy reform has been the sustainability of the electricity system. This posted a surplus of more than 300 million euros in 2014, for the first time in 12 years, and this amount will probably exceed 500 million euros in 2015, announced the minister.

José Manuel Soria advocated that, once this level of sustainability is attained, we must continue increasing the participation of renewable technologies in the portfolio of electricity supply, and the round of calls approved on Friday by the government is framed within this objective. The procedure for the call is that of the competitive basis of award, in other words, an auction, the conditions of which will be established in a future ministerial order.

In relation to renewable energies, Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría reported that the government has taken stock of the degree of compliance with the targets in this area for the year 2020. In 2014, a level of 17% of renewable energies was achieved, compared with a forecast of 12.1% on the path to reaching 20% by 2020, "which will allow us, if this trend continues, to be comfortable in terms of meeting this objective", he maintained.

Financial support for industrial investment

The government authorised the granting of financial support to carry out industrial investment actions within the framework of the public policy of re-industrialisation and to help boost industrial competitiveness.

José Manuel Soria specified that a total of 299 projects will receive financial support, with a total investment of 554 million euros, of which 463 are "soft" loans.

Of these, four required authorisation from the Council of Ministers as they exceeded the amount of 12 million euros: one is to develop a new industrial plant for raw materials in Palencia; another is a technological project for galvanised and steel products in Santander; the third is a chipboard plant in Cuenca and the fourth provides for the extension of a glass processing plant in Leon.

Reform of the Public Administration

Pool Moncloa / J. M. CuadradoThe Vice-President of the Government explained that the majority of the measures proposed by the Commission for the Reform of the Public Administration are now implemented. "The degree of implementation exceeds 80%; 180 measures have now been completed".

Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría highlighted that the government has eliminated more than 2,300 public bodies, with a total saving for the public administration in excess of 30 billion euros. Moreover, the raft of measures has generated savings for the public and for companies for a sum of 3 billion euros. Among these initiatives, the Vice-President of the Government recalled that parents can now register new-borns directly from the hospital, without the need to visit the civil registry office.

In relation to the elimination of public bodies, Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría highlighted that the government has approved a Royal Decree that updates the Statute of the "Esteban Terradas" National Institute of Aerospace Technology (Spanish acronym: INTA) on Friday, which integrates another three public bodies under the Ministry of Defence related with technological research on space and aeronautics, shipbuilding and ground security.

The government also integrated the Military Construction Service within the independent Institute for Housing, Infrastructure and Defence Equipment (Spanish acronym: INVIED).

Fight against human trafficking

The Council of Ministers approved an institutional statement on human trafficking on the occasion of the European day to be held the following Sunday. The Vice-President of the Government pointed out that the text reiterates the government's unconditional support for victims, calls on all of society to acknowledge its existence and help contribute, by rejecting it, to its eradication.

She also recalled the measures that the government has adopted in this term of office to eliminate this scourge, such as the reform of the Criminal Code, which improves the criminalisation of the crime of human trafficking; the modification of the system to protect infants and adolescents, which steps up the protection of the most vulnerable victims and the Comprehensive Plan to combat the trafficking of women and girls for the purpose of sexual exploitation 2015-2018.

Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría claimed that "human trafficking is today's form of slavery and a sad reality of huge proportions that means the most fundamental of rights of millions of people from around the world are violated". She also underlined that "the main victims are women and girls, whereby the background of inequality and violence to which they are subject in their societies of origin is taken advantage of".

Other agreements

Pool Moncloa / J. M. CuadradoAt an international level, the Council of Ministers authorised the signing of an Additional Protocol to the Convention of the Council of Europe on the Prevention of Terrorism. The document includes various provisions with the aim of signatory States criminalising new forms of conduct related to terrorism and boosting the exchange of information between States on those people that travel abroad for the purpose of terrorism, according to Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría.

The government also agreed to the contribution from Spain, for an amount of 4.6 million euros, to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief.

Current affairs

The Vice-President of the Government described the declarations from the Acting President of the Regional Government of Catalonia, Artur Mas, as "atrocious", in which he stated that he would not obey a hypothetical sentence for organising the participative process of 9 November. "Every Spaniard is subject to the law and to the rulings and sentences handed down by the courts", said Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría, who enquired after the power that Regional President Mas has "to ask the people of Catalonia to respect the laws approved by the Regional Parliament of Catalonia or the decisions taken by the bodies under the Regional Government of Catalonia if he himself is prepared to place himself above the democracy. I believe that Mr Mas thinks that he is democracy, whereas democracy means following the law and respecting the judiciary".

As regards the internal situations of the government and the latest statements from Ministers Montoro and García-Margallo, the Government Spokesperson said that "what are important are not the reflections, but the decisions and policies" and those adopted by the government are those that have contributed to "improving the economic and social situation of Spain". She added that the government is focused on continuing "with economic growth and recovery".

Asked about the statement made by the President of the Regional Government of Castile Leon, Juan Vicente Herrera, on the policy of the Ministry of Industry, Energy and Tourism, José Manuel Soria responded that, from the very start of the term of office, the decisions that the government has taken in relation to the coal industry have been taken in line with EU policy.