The Minister of Economy, Carlos Body, defended this Friday the need to approve within the EU some new European funds similar to ‘Next Generation’and therefore financed by European public debt, to face the new investments posed by the “Dragui Report”, quantified at more than 800 billion euros, or around 5% of Community GDP.
Body, who participated in the VI edition of the Toja-Vínculo Atlántico Forum, responded that he was “to death” with the proposal of the former Italian Prime Minister and former President of the ECB, Mario Dragui, to approve a model similar to the “Next Generation” for the years to come, and added that it is “inevitable” that the EU’s investment needs will be financed by European public debt.
In this regard, the head of the Economy reiterated that the “next generation” meant a radical change in this exit from the crisiswith the first pandemic in 100 years and the first inflation crisis in 40 years and without apparent scars in Europe, success must therefore be sold and continue on this path.
According to him, the more than 800 billion euros that Dragui is proposing to reindustrialize Europe They cannot be financed even by capital marketsneither on the side of the EU budget, nor on the part of the Member States which, with the new budgetary rules, must reduce their public deficits, and the boost from the European Investment Bank (EIB) is not no longer sufficient.
For this reason, Corp believes that it is necessary for Europe to assume “strategic leadership of this new reindustrialization” and, moreover, for it to have a “specific European seal” that differentiates it from other global players, which implies commitment to multilateralism. decarburization and the welfare state.
Chinese investments in Spain
Furthermore, he indicated that this reindustrialization process and the need to increase investments in Europe imply “urgently” improving European governance and bureaucratic problems within the EU “not to stay in a box”, he said.
In this sense, the call ‘diet 28’ which offers the “Letta Report” of EU reform, in the form of a new “fictitious” member state that allows companies to operate quickly in the EU and that the Spanish government wants to import to Spain with the so-called “regime 20”, that is to say a community. additional’ for unify the rules and eliminate bureaucracy.
Concerning the survival of Chinese investments in Spain, Carlos Corpo considers that They are not in danger despite customs duties on imported cars of the Asian giant which plans to set up in Brussels and has chosen to attract production that generates jobs in the country.
The minister responds in a context where this Friday European governments failed to obtain a sufficient majority neither for nor against customs tariffs on electric cars imported from China, which gives the EC the power to adopt in the coming days the final decision which makes permanent the tariffs that the EU has provisionally imposed since last July.
Taxes on large businesses
Asked about the proposals of the governments of countries like Italy or France aimed at increasing taxes on large companies, Corpus considered it “good news” that the issue is under discussion, recalling the imposition of a minimum rate of 15%.
Regarding the question of whether these ideas which arise in Europe could influence the decisions of the Government, the Minister of the Economy explained that the commitment of the Executive of maintain taxes on electricity companies and financial entities.
Corps also spoke about the situation of instability in the country and affirmed that Spain is a “reference in democracy”, thus denying the criticism aimed at the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez. This is how he expressed himself after being questioned about the article published by the British media “The Economist”which accuses Sánchez of clinging to power to the detriment of democracy.
In this regard, he “denied the major” and stressed that Spain “is currently a reference at the European level” in aspects such as the economy, being the locomotive between the major European economies.
Finally, Body mentioned the words of the Governor of the Bank of Spain (and until a month ago Minister of Digital Transformation and Civil Service), José Luis Escriváwho said “he is not aware” that capping rents in distressed areas has a positive impact on prices.
Concerning these declarations, the head of the Economy believes that it is “a little early” to have “concrete data” or “sufficient evidence” to see the effect of the lawwhich is already applied in Catalonia.
