Congress gives the ‘green light’ to the government’s new anti-crisis plan with the abstention of the PP and Vox

The package includes a reduction in VAT on basic food until mid-2023, as well as a 200-euro aid for vulnerable families.

• The panel Citizens question Sánchez’s anti-crisis measures: neither the VAT reduction nor the 200-euro check will be effective
• energy The Government will allocate more than 2,000 million to plug the hole in the anti-crisis plan in the electrical system

The Government He takes his first parliamentary step of the year firmly. The third and last anti-crisis plan designed by the Executive of Pedro Sánchez already has the endorsement of the Congress of Deputies. The Lower House approved on Tuesday the measures to deal with the socioeconomic impact of the war in Ukraine with comfortable numbers, since the Popular Party and Vox opted for abstention, which reduced to just seven the parliamentarians who rejected the extension.

The package had been in force since the end of December, when it was published in the Official State Gazette (BOE), but needed the approval of Congress. Now, it will be processed as a bill, which will allow the text to be polished throughout the parliamentary process, just as the Executive’s allies demanded of Sánchez. This same Tuesday, parties of all stripes criticized the lack of debate in its wording, at the same time that the ERC and the CUP denounced the shallowness of the roadmap. ERC, for this reason, opted for abstention: “Being arcane and cowardly does not do this government any good,” defined Gabriel Rufin in the corridors of the Lower House.

In fact, the general feeling, outside of Carrera de San Jerónimo, is one of uncertainty in the face of the measures designed by Moncloa. As reflected in the survey carried out by Sigma Dos for THE WORLD On January 5th, close to half of the Spaniards considered that the new decisions adopted would hardly reduce the pressure caused by the crisis and they see electoral interests in this road map.

“This decree is going to be very positive for all Spaniards”, celebrated the Minister of the Presidency, Flix Bolaos, after finishing the debate and to avoid criticism coming even from among his partners. With the green light of the Chamber, the Government manages to extend its shock plan for several more months in the face of the effects of the conflict, practically a year after its outbreak. In addition, it includes a reduction in VAT on basic food until mid-2023, as well as a 200-euro aid for vulnerable families.

In this way, the Government also manages to maintain the reduced VAT rates in the energy field (contained at 5% for electricity, natural gas and biomass for heating), and the protocol that prohibits cutting off the supply to the most disadvantaged groups.

Many of these decisions, they explain in the PP, were previously raised by the main opposition party. For this reason, despite being executed late and several of them being poorly designed, the popular They opted for abstention this Tuesday, according to what the general secretary of formation, Cuca Gamarra, considered: “He is late and many important things have been left unanswered,” he explained along the same lines as Jaime de Olano, who was the parliamentarian in charge of defend the position of the PP in the debate.

An argument similar to that used by Vox, which, despite the fact that at first there was talk of betting on not voting, opted for abstention. Ivn Espinosa de los Monteros, yes, called it “political trilerism” and simply “narrated” the measures related to lowering VAT: “You don’t lower taxes, you raise them,” he lamented from the rostrum during his speech.

Finally, the plan went ahead with 175 votes in favor (the PSOE, Unidas Podemos, PNV, EH Bildu, Ms Pas, Comproms and the PRC), just seven against (JxCAT, the CUP and Teruel Existe) and a wide and varied 164 votes abstained (the PP, Vox, ERC, Ciudadanos, Coalicin Canaria, BNG and Foro Asturias).