The delegate of the Government in the Valencian Community, Pilar Bernabé, said that the Central Executive “maintains the commitment to the Valencian Community with the historical contribution of 9.000M€ in the last five years”. Of the total, more than 5.133M€ are direct investments of the Government of Spain, 2.520M€ of direct transfers of the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan and 1.254M€ come from the REACT EU Plan.
Bernabé, who today presented the balance sheet of the main actions of the Central Executive during 2023, has indicated that “with this economic injection, the Government of Spain strengthens the welfare state, economic development, energy efficiency and infrastructure of the C.Valenciana”.
Infrastructures
“All these investments carried out by the Government of Spain have favored that all the infrastructures dreamed of have become reality,” said the delegate. In this regard, he highlighted the Mediterranean Corridor, whose progress in recent years “has had an unprecedented pace”. In these 5 years more than 5,500 M€ have been awarded, 78% of the route is in execution, 88% is already planned and 100% of the studies carried out. Also, the expansion of the Port of Valencia already has 657 M€; and the integral rehabilitation of the Zapadores Police Complex, with 30 M€, “the biggest investment in police infrastructures”.
Another issue that “worries the government” is guaranteeing water forever, not as a political weapon.” The Government has allocated almost €365M to the modernization of irrigation, of which €105M and €264M are in project. In addition to the approximately €600M for improving water infrastructure, especially in the province of Alicante, planned for the period 2022-2027. The delegate has also highlighted the investment in the regeneration of coasts and coastlines where more than € 110M have been executed for the actions on the beaches of Southern Valencia or on the beaches of Denia, among others.
According to the delegate, between June and November 2023, “the investment tendered in the Valencian Community by the Government exceeds by more than €232M the investment made by the Generalitat”. “There is a big bet on the part of the Spanish Government that the Autonomous Government would have to take as an example,” he added.
Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan
According to the data provided by Bernabé, the Valencian Community has received €5,943m from the Next Generation-EU Funds from 2021 to the end of December 2023 for actions linked to the digitalisation of the water cycle, sustainability and decarbonisation, science and innovation and industrial development. From these funds, 39,000 SMEs and self-employed people have benefited from the Valencian Community.
The delegate recalled that in the last report of the IVIE, the C.Valenciana was one of the autonomous communities with “better pace of execution of this aid”. However, now “we note with concern that some municipalities such as Alicante, Elche or València have changed or paralysed projects related to low-emission areas. These actions go against sustainable development and the 2030 Agenda.”
The delegate has indicated that “thanks to the European funds and the action of the Government, the Valencian Community will become a reference in the electrification of mobility”, with the Volkswagen gigantic in Sagunto, promoted by the PERTE of the electric vehicle; the new plant for the assembly of batteries of 100% electric vehicles of Ford Almussafes, which has € 37M of aid or the Gestamp Levante project with € 5M for the assembly of the battery box in Valencia. In addition, as he recalled, “the Comunitat will be a leader on the road to the green transition. The hydrogen cluster in Castelló will create a new energy, technological and industrial ecosystem based on renewables.”
Social Shield
Bernabé pointed out that “the Valencian Community is very well served by the Government of Pedro Sánchez with measures that protect against the cuts in employment, territory, sustainability and environment that have been included in the last budgets of the Autonomous Government”. In this line, he said, “it is essential that the Government of Spain continue to be a dam of containment in the face of these policies that recall the time of the cuts that led this community to the worst levels of poverty.”
The delegate recalled that thanks to the increase in pensions approved by the Government of Spain the pensioners of the C.Valenciana charge 288 euros more than in 2018.
Bernabé added that “since Pedro Sánchez arrived in Moncloa the Minimum Wage has grown like never before in the democratic history of Spain”. Today “the SMI is 54% higher than in 2018”. In the Valencian Community, workers are paid 398 € more than five years ago.
In addition, the Labor Reform has favored that the C.Valenciana has accounted for about 691,682 indefinite contracts, which is 218% more than in 2019. The government works “to create quality jobs and jobs. We see it in the latest unemployment data that reflect a reduction in Spain of 1%.” However, he pointed out, “it does not happen the same in the Comunitat, which is the third autonomy where it rises the most.” Therefore, the delegate has requested “that all administrations work together to address this issue”.
As for Social Security membership, last December it closed with 2,134,226 people, which is 229,979 more than in December 2018.
For its part, the Minimum Vital Income has benefited 236,056 people; the scholarships have been allocated to 102,336 scholarships and scholarships for a total amount close to 216 million euros; the social electric voucher has favored about 209,640 people and the transport voucher has benefited 207,925 users.