The president of Foment del Treball, Josep Sánchez Llibre, has estimated today at 39,369 million euros the investment deficit of the set of administrations in infrastructures in Catalonia during the last 14 years and has increased by almost 5,000 million euros in the last year .
The president of the employers' association presented today the report "The infrastructure investment deficit in Catalonia 2009-2022" together with the president of the employers' association's infrastructure commission, Anna Cornadó, the president of the Chamber of Contractors and Works, Lluis Moreno and the director of Foment studies, Salvador Guillermo.
Sánchez Llibre has called for investment in infrastructure equivalent to 2.2% of GDP, some 5,000 million euros, which is the average for public investment in the 12 eurozone countries, and has lamented that right now in Catalonia it is "below minimums, very far" from that figure.
Sánchez Llibre has called for investment in infrastructure equivalent to 2.2% of GDP, some 5,000 million euros, which is the average public investment of the 12 eurozone countries, and has lamented that right now in Catalonia it is "below minimum , very far" from that figure, which is already "conservative" according to Anna Cornadó. Except in 2009, public works bidding in Catalonia has fluctuated between 34% and 40% of what would have to be adequate, which would be between 5,000 and 6,000 million euros.
Sánchez Llibre recalled that if the investments were adequate, the impact on the economy would have been even greater, due to the drag effect that these infrastructures have on private investment. In addition, Cornadó recalled, they not only reduce the well-being of citizens, but also hinder the competitiveness of the country's economy.
The president of Foment recalled that the deficit is caused by a lack of investment from all administrations, and persists despite the fact that public investments have increased in the last two years, up to 2,958 and 3,964 million euros, respectively, levels closer to to European standards.
Sánchez Llibre called for an urgent summit after the elections between the new president of the Spanish government who comes out of the polls and the president of the Generalitat to make effective the integral transfer of all the railway infrastructures of the State in Catalonia, from the stations, the tracks, trains, workshops and catenaries. "This transfer would have to be carried out with the appropriate budget allocation," warned Sánchez Llibre, who estimated the deficit in operating the service at 330 million euros per year, and 6,600 million euros of investment in trains necessary until 2023.
