- The management of penitentiary institutions will remain, from October 1, in the hands of the Autonomous Community. Penitentiary legislation and regulations will remain a state competence, common throughout Spain
The Council of Ministers approved on Tuesday, on the proposal of the Ministry of Territorial Policy and Public Service, four royal decrees that formalize the transfer of the new competences to the Basque Country that were agreed on May 10, in the Joint Transfer Commission.
Thus, from October 1, 2021, the Basque Country will manage the penitentiary institutions located in its territory. These are the Penitentiary Centre of Bilbao, the Penitentiary Centre of Álava/Araba and the Penitentiary Centre of San Sebastián.
Penitentiary legislation and regulations will continue to be a State competence, common throughout Spain. The Basque Country will assume the functions of direction, supervision, organization, economic and administrative management and inspection of the centres.
The transfer includes real estate related to the prison service located in Bilbao, Basauri, San Sebastián, Nanclares de la Oca and Álava. The State also transfers 684 occupied and vacant jobs, currently attached to the General Secretariat of Penitentiary Institutions and the State entity of public law Penitentiary Work and Training for Employment.
The Council of Ministers has also approved the Royal Decree on the transfer of personal, budgetary and financial resources relating to private transport, ancillary and complementary activities, transport, arbitration and professional competence for transport and ancillary and complementary activities.
This transfer will be effective throughout 2021, when the corresponding Foral Agreements on Updating and Equalization in Land Transport by Road are signed.
On the other hand, the royal decree has been approved that determines that the Basque Country will exercise, within its territorial scope, the corresponding functions in terms of granting international codes of identification of serial publications (ISSN) in relation to companies and entities located in its territory.
Finally, the transfer of a building in the port of Ondárroa (Bizkaia), which was the former headquarters of the Maritime District, has been formalized.
The latter two agreements shall enter into force on the day following the publication of their respective royal decrees in the Official State Gazette.