Pedro Sánchez convenes the 26th Conference of Presidents on 25 February in La Palma

The Canary Island will host the meeting of the head of the Executive with all leaders of the regional governments, as Sánchez promised last December, as a demonstration of the support and solidarity of the Spanish people with the people of La Palma and their island after the eruption of the Cumbre Vieja volcano.

Prior to the meeting of the Conference of Presidents, on Thursday 24 February, from 5 pm (local time), the President of the Government of Spain will accompany Their Majesties King Felipe and Queen Letizia at the Act of Homage to the exemplary nature of the people of La Palma, which will be held in the town of Santa Cruz de La Palma in support of the island's inhabitants.

On the morning of Thursday, 24 February, a new meeting of the Joint Committee for the Reconstruction, Recovery and Support of the island of La Palma will also be held, bringing together representatives of the Government of Spain, the Canary Islands government, the City Hall of La Palma and the local councils affected by the volcanic eruption to evaluate the implementation of the measures adopted for the volcanic emergency.

In compliance with the established agenda, the 26th Conference of Presidents will report on the follow-up and implementation of the agreements adopted at the last ordinary Conference of Presidents, held on 17 January 2017, and will address the epidemiological situation arising from the COVID-19 pandemic, economic and social recovery, the state of execution of the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan funds, the amendment to the Conference of Presidents regulations and cooperation in Civil Protection emergencies.

Conference of Presidents

The Conference of Presidents, the highest political body for multilateral cooperation between the State and the regional governments and cities, which will also be attended by the President of the Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces (FEMP), Abel Caballero, and aims to debate and adopt agreements on matters of particular relevance to the regional system.

Since its creation in 2004, this body has held 25 meetings at different intervals, eight of them face-to-face - the last on 30 July 2021 in Salamanca - and 17 online meetings as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Since the arrival of Pedro Sánchez to the Presidency of the Government, the Conference of Presidents has met 20 times - 17 of them online and three in person - including the meeting in La Palma on 25 February. The two previous face-to-face meetings were held on 31 July 2020 in San Millán de la Cogolla, La Rioja, and on 30 July 2021 in Salamanca.

Non official translation