The agreement between PSOE and Esquerra for the investiture of Pedro Sánchez includes an exclusive chapter on financing that will lead to a “significant improvement in public resources destined for the citizens of Catalonia.” Among the points that appear there, one stands out that has already provoked protests from other autonomous communities: a forgiveness of around 20% of Catalonia's doubt with the Autonomous Liquidity Fund (FLA). The same agreement estimates this reduction at around 15,000 million euros and the savings of around 1,300 million in interest.
The agreement on financing is based on a diagnosis shared by both parties that "Catalonia is one of the main economic drivers of the State and the third community that contributes the most resources", but the "underexecution of investments", together with "aspects of the financing” and “the debt burden that Catalonia bears”, have ended up “affecting” its financial autonomy. To alleviate this burden, the current debt of the Generalitat with the State, estimated at 71,036 million euros at the end of 2022, may be reduced thanks to this forgiveness which, as stated yesterday by the Minister of the Presidency, Félix Bolaños, will allow the Generalitat to “ go to the markets” to finance themselves.
This measure will not be exclusive to Catalonia. The minister detailed, in his appearance at the PSC headquarters, that the rest of the autonomous communities integrated into the common regime and that have operated with the FLA will also be able to benefit from this condonation. However, the volume of the haircut will not be identical since its amount will be established based on the financing costs that have been assumed in recent years using the FLA mechanism. The communities that will not benefit from this measure will be those of the regional regime (Navarra and the Basque Country) and Madrid, which has not been financed through this mechanism.
This agreement has generated complaints from regional presidents of the PP. The Andalusian Juanma Moreno demanded “equality” after “the moral humiliation of Sánchez”, and Isabel Díaz Ayuso lamented that “what Catalonia does not pay, we all pay.”
The agreement also includes a commitment to reverse Catalonia's financing problems through a bilateral commission to be established in the first quarter of 2024. And "singular" issues that require more resources, such as the Mossos d'Esquadra, the new judicial bodies, the penitentiary services, research and development, and scholarships and aid for students. In all cases, parameters are set for the annual transfer of resources.
