Pedro Sánchez announces that the Government of Spain has approved a new royal decree-law with 29 measures to restore the social shield

Moncloa Palace, Madrid

The President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, during the appearance after the meeting of the Council of Ministers (Pool Moncloa/Borja Puig de la Bellacasa)

In an appearance at the Moncloa Palace, Sánchez explained that the royal decree-law contains 29 measures, including the revaluation of pensions in accordance with the CPI, the improvement of minimum pensions, aid for municipalities, households and companies affected by the DANA, aid for public transport and aid for those affected by the volcano on La Palma. Furthermore, he announced that it also includes an additional measure on housing, which was not included in the previous one, which is the "creation of a public system of guarantees for landlords and tenants".

Regarding the economic package, the President said that the government "is negotiating with the parliamentary groups so that it can be approved in a matter of weeks". Here he referred to measures such as support for the electro-intensive industry, the Moves Plan for the purchase of electric vehicles, or the payments on account to improve the financing of the autonomous communities. In his opinion, we are talking about "measures that are necessary and good for the country", which "the public administrations and the productive fabric are asking for", so he hopes that they will have "the support of a majority of parliamentary groups". "At least from those who share the desire for our country to continue to lead economic growth and job creation in Europe," he said.

For this reason, the head of the Executive has invited all the parliamentary groups "to vote in favour of these measures, which enjoy overwhelming support from Spanish society" and has asked those who do not support them "not to use hoaxes, lies, falsehoods, fake news, but arguments to justify their rejection". "Let them explain why they are not prepared to recognise that pensioners should have their pensions revalued. Or why those affected by the DANA in Valencia cannot count on the aid they need".

In his opinion, "a government - any government - can lose a parliamentary vote, as has been the case, but we will not resign ourselves to allowing the social majority of our country to lose". "This is why we have negotiated to the point of exhaustion and have sought support from all sides to further advance the welfare of the people. We have been making this possible for seven years, despite the denialism of the usual suspects," he said.

Improving the social bonus for electricity

The President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, during the appearance after the meeting of the Council of Ministers | Pool Moncloa/José Manuel Álvarez

Pedro Sánchez recalled that it has been said that this royal decree-law contained measures that would push up the price of electricity. "This is false, it's not true. In fact, it is the other way around. This decree improves the social bonus which vulnerable families benefit from when it comes to paying their electricity bill", he stressed.

"It has been said that a mansion was given to the PNV, but nothing is given away here. A property that was seized by the German Gestapo and Franco's regime in the 1930s is being returned to its rightful owner. It is being returned as dozens of properties seized during the dictatorship have already been returned", the President explained.

Thirdly, and with regard to this royal decree-law raising VAT on foodstuffs, Sánchez stated that this is "another falsehood, another hoax, another lie", as "it does not contain any measure in this respect. Not one". "

In his opinion, the denialist strategy "is harmful for Spain", but "far from affecting the coalition government, it makes it stronger, because they remind us of the importance of ensuring that our social agenda for progress moves forward".

The Government of agreements

In the President's opinion, the last few days have taught us that, "despite the difficulties, and despite being in a parliamentary minority, the progressive coalition government is the government of agreements. These agreements, he stressed, "have enabled us to achieve record figures for economic growth, the transformation of our production model, job creation and, at the same time, the reduction of inequalities and greenhouse gases". And all this has been achieved "with social peace", unlike what happened at other times in our country, when counter-reforms were unilaterally approved and met with social rejection, as was the case with the labour counter-reform or the pension counter-reform.

The head of the Executive also thanked all the members of the Council of Ministers for "their aptitude and attitude, because we don't give up, we sweat it out, and in the end things work out, in favour of the social majority", as evidenced by the revaluation of pensions. He also expressed his "gratitude and recognition to the parliamentary groups who, from different positions, are capable of thinking about the general interest and reaching agreements for the benefit of the people". "The noise of democracy may sometimes be uncomfortable, but it will always be infinitely better than the silence of autocracies. In this country, unfortunately, we know this well," he added.

EPA data

The President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, during the appearance after the meeting of the Council of Ministers | Pool Moncloa/José Manuel Álvarez

During his appearance, Sánchez highlighted the EPA data released today, which show that Spain registered the lowest unemployment rate in the last 16 years in 2024 and created almost half a million jobs. He also wanted to highlight the fact that the forecasts we have for 2025 and 2026 are also for an intense pace of job creation and that today we account for 40% of the economic growth of the European Union as a whole. This "remarkable progress is not the exclusive merit of the government", he said, but "of all the parliamentary groups that make it possible with their votes, of companies and workers, and of Spanish society as a whole". "I would like to thank all of them," he concluded.

Non official translation