This Friday, the Government began contacts for the cycle which Pedro Sanchez wants to open with regional presidentsThe schedule of meetings, which will be finalized in the coming days, will be organized according to the statutory order, according to sources from the Executive, that is, starting with the Basque Country, Catalonia, Galicia And Andalusia. And the meetings will take place at Moncloa Palace.
Sánchez is now trying to take the initiative, but the leaders of the PP They have been asking for months, even years, to be taken care of at Moncloa. The most extreme case is that of the president of the Region of Murcia, Fernando Lopez Miraswho accumulates more than six years without seeing Sanchez in a bilateral meeting. The last meeting took place at September 2018.
Since that meeting, the Murcian president has sent Sánchez more than 20 cardswithout receiving a response, according to sources in the López Miras government to EL ESPAÑOL. The last letter is dated May 2024, after the veto of the Ministry of Ecological Transition to the port project The Gorguel In Cartagena.
Cards accumulated
In addition to the numerous requests of López Miras, Sánchez accumulates other letters from popular leaders. Some examples, as this newspaper was able to compile: Jorge Azcon (Aragon) He requested to see Sánchez by mail on November 23, 2023; Carlos Mazon (Valencian Community), January 16 and July 4; Juanma Moreno (Andalusia), November 9, 2023 and January 15 of this year; Maria Jose Saenz de Buruaga (Cantabria), December 4, 2023, etc.
The President of the Community of Madrid, Isabel Diaz Ayusowho has been governing since the summer of 2019, has only been received once at Moncloa, in July 2021. Sources of the Madrid leader explain to EL ESPAÑOL that Ayuso has not sent any letter to Sánchez requesting a meeting. “What we have been asking for years is the Conference of Presidents,” these sources insist.
No elections in sight
Sanchez initially hoped to close “the electoral process cycle in Spain”, according to sources from Moncloa, to begin, without elections in sight, communication with the autonomous governments, as well as with the autonomous cities of Ceuta And Melilla.
Sanchez’s announcement also comes amid debate over the concert CatalanLast week, during the inauguration of the political course on September 4, Sánchez proposed “more money” to the autonomies, with the aim of opening a breach within the PP and with the aim of diverting attention from the discussion on their own taxation of Catalonia.
In fact, he has partially achieved his first objective, because after the announcement of Sánchez, the president of the Community of Madrid, Isabel Diaz Ayusoasked her party colleagues to boycott bilateral meetings with Sánchez. He later qualified his position and clarified that he was only asking for them to be sabotaged if regional funding was negotiated. The Madrid leader thus demonstrated unity with the rest of her regional colleagues and marked a closing of ranks with Alberto Nuñez Feijoowho sought to show a common front against Sanchez.
Pradales and Illa
Other territorial leaders, however, have been luckier. Of course, they do not bear the PP acronym. This is the case of lehendakari Basque, Imanol Pradales (PNV), or the president of the Generalitat of Catalonia, Salvador Illa (CPS). The first took office on June 22 and, a month later, on July 26, he received Sánchez in Ajurie Aeneasseat of the Basque Government. The second, inaugurated on August 9, met Sánchez the same month, although it was an informal meeting during their two vacations in Lanzarote.
The Galician President, Alphonse Ruedawho took the oath before Pradales or Illa —April 13—, as sources from the Xunta de Galicia remind this newspaper, Sánchez has not yet responded, although he addressed Sánchez by letter on May 10 to request a bilateral meeting.
The Basque and Catalan leaders will now be the first to meet with Sánchez, as the meetings will take place in the order in which the Statutes of Autonomy were created. This means that the popular presidents will be postponed in this series of contacts, although Sánchez recently spoke with Pradales and Illa.
Conference of Presidents
In addition to the demands for bilateral summits, the leaders of the PP communities are demanding that Sánchez call a meeting as soon as possible. Conference of Presidentswhich has not been celebrated since March 2022.
They have already done so on several occasions, some presidents individually, but also jointly (November 2023 or April of this year). This entire process has culminated in the recent presentation of 11 calls for Supreme Courtseveral of them admitted for treatment this week, to urgently convene a multilateral table.
