Government approves a 20-million euro subsidy for dairy sector

Moncloa Palace, Madrid

The Council of Ministers approved a Royal Decree to regulate the direct concession of subsidies for dairy cattle farms, in order to alleviate the economic difficulties that have been affecting many livestock breeders since April this year. These subsidies, for a total sum of 20 million euros, form part of the measures that the government undertook to push through in August to help support the sector.

The Minister for Agriculture, Food and Environmental Affairs, Isabel García Tejerina, recalled that the government has been offering its full support to all livestock breeders and to the dairy sector since the start of this term of office, and in particular since the end of the dairy quotas and following the drop in prices in the European market, which is affecting the profitability of many livestock holdings.

She also underlined that the government has adopted all the measures legally possible to boost the sector, including mobilising its EU partners and the European Commission with the aim of making this sector more sustainable. "No other Member State in the European Union has adopted as many measures to support its dairy sector as the Spanish Government", she underlined.

Pool MoncloaIsabel García Tejerina explained that the government approved this extraordinary aid to milk producers on Friday to avoid any holding having to close as a result of the situation of low prices. The measure will provide liquidity while prices are in a process of recovery, enabling all livestock breeders to maintain their productive activity.

Subsidies will consist of a one-off payment that will be granted ex officio according to the number of dairy cattle held by each breeder. The minister specified that "those breeders whose income is below production costs will receive 300 euros per head of cattle up to a maximum of 10,000 euros per holding". Furthermore, those breeders that cover their costs but which, as a result of the modernisation investments carried out on their holdings, do not make a profit, will also be entitled to receive a subsidy of 104 euros per head of cattle up to a maximum of 10,000 euros per holding.

The minister announced that these subsidies will be paid out as from the month of November and are in addition to others that the government has negotiated with the European Union. Dairy sector breeders will receive 175 million euros under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) as from 16 October and 25.5 million euros from the European Commission in December.

Corporate Equality hallmark

Pool MoncloaThe government has modified the rules regulating the granting and regulation of the "Corporate Equality" hallmark, which rewards those companies that stand out in the application of equal treatment and opportunity policies over and above the levels required by law.

The Vice-President of the Government, Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría, explained that the regulation of the hallmark will be improved "so that it can become much more flexible, more effective and more transparent". The measure seeks to "consolidate the symbol as a mark of excellence in the field of equal opportunities between men and women at a business level". It also increases the number of entities that can be awarded the hallmark from among not-for-profit organisations, foundations and special employment centres.

General Codification Commission

Within the context of the measures to reform the public administration and improve regulation, the Vice-President of the Government outlined the update to the Articles of Association of the General Codification Commission, which is the senior collegiate advisory body in the preparation of pre-legislative tasks of the Ministry of Justice.

Pool MoncloaWhat we seek under this reform is to renew and adapt this commission to the demands of 21st Century society by providing it with a "more open and more transparent" format, said Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría.

The independence and technical ability of its members will be boosted, and it will be opened up to various legal sectors. Furthermore, the commission's capacity will be enhanced to include advice on legislative white papers and not only on green papers (draft bills and draft laws) within its duties.

According to the Vice-President of the Government, the aim is for this body, which has a "great technical and professional capacity", but which was only focused on issues of civil and commercial law, to help throughout the whole legal spectrum "to ensure sound regulatory texts and improve the legal certainty of citizens, workers and companies".

Other agreements

• Authorisation of a complementary loan of 105 million euros allocated to the care of dependent individuals in 2015
• Authorisation for the use of the reserves under the Healthy Thermalism programme 2016 and 2017 of the Institute for the Elderly and Social Services (Spanish acronym: IMSERSO)
• Formalisation of the criteria for the distribution to regional governments of 141 million euros to finance the implementation of the Constitutional Law to Improve the Quality of Education (Spanish acronym: LOMCE)
• Authorisation of emergency works, amounting to 17.9 million euros, to repair the damage caused by storms at the start of the year in the Ebro and Jucar river basins. In addition, authorisation of emergency works, amounting to 6.9 million euros, to combat the effects of drought in the Jucar river basin

Current affairs

Pool MoncloaWhen asked about various issues related to the holding of regional elections in Catalonia on Sunday and about the government's policy in this autonomous region, the Vice-President of the Government responded that "it falls to the people of Catalonia to make their voice heard on 27 September and that we, the government, will continue working to defend the Constitution, legality and to bed down economic recovery and job creation in Catalonia and in the rest of Spain". She added that the government, since the start of the legislature, as from Monday and at all times, has worked to maintain social services, infrastructure and the well-being of the people of Catalonia.

As regards information on the "recruitment" of pro-sovereignty judges, Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría stressed that the judiciary is "independent and the only body to interpret and apply the law through its rulings". This hypothetical situation would go against judicial independence vis-à-vis the executive, she said.

The Vice-President of the Government asserted that, in the sovereignty process being undertaken by the Regional Government of Catalonia, its president, Artur Mas "is asking for a position that is neither unanimous, of two-thirds or even of an absolute majority of the population as a whole". "The first people who he must talk with and respect is the sizable part of the people of Catalonia who do not share his approach", she declared.

As regards the situation created by the replacement of certain vehicle components of the company Volkswagen, the Government Spokesperson reported that, given that the issue affects all 28 Member States of the EU, contact is being maintained with the European Commission to adopt coordinated and joint measures. Moreover, she stressed that the "levels of investment and employment" of the company in Spain are guaranteed.