One of the marathon meetings on the hour for decisive to negotiate a new Government. The equipment of the PSOE and the Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya (ERC) have come together again this afternoon in Madrid to try to unlock the endowment, pending the tensions of all kinds that surround these conversations. The Government has gotten involved today, Friday more pressure to CKD to the park for the climb of the board of nine million people, the increase in wages of officials and the improvement in the minimum wage. Socialists and republicans are pending, in addition, the opinion of the State attorney on the immunity of the former vice president Oriol Junqueras, who could be ready on Monday, and it is crucial to secure the abstention of CKD. The Central Electoral Board (JEC) has entered today into that equation and analyze the incapacitation of the president Quim Torra in a key moment of the talks: on Friday, January 3.
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Sources close to the negotiators have confirmed to this newspaper that the meeting and have stated that there have been “advances”, although the agreement does not end close. Officially Esquerra confirmed the meeting but said that it was developed without a “news relevant”. This Friday was an important day: the idea that was handled in this round was to close all the borders as possible so that CKD could bring together to your dome. The republicans, however, declined to confirm whether there is a formal convening of its national council, the highest organ between parties that should give the green light to a possible agreement, and that should be convened with at least 24 hours in advance, reports Camilo S. Baquero.
The negotiation is accelerating again, after a week of a relative stop, although informal contacts continued, mostly between Adriana Lastra and Gabriel Ruffian. The socialists continue to work with the goal of achieving an endowment before Kings, on the 5th day. But no one is in a position to guarantee anything, because every day there are external elements that complicate everything. The latter has been the Central Electoral Board, which has decided to meet the next Friday, in the peak moment —if all goes well we would be producing the first ballot of the endowment— to decide whether to disable Quim Torra, something that could precipitate nothing less than a breakthrough election in Catalonia.
despite the noise that affects the situation, the six negotiators have kept the meeting this Friday afternoon in Madrid to try to close definitely the key document, which will set the format, the content and the limits of the table of Governments to find a solution to the conflict in Catalonia.
But the negotiations go beyond those meetings that have happened over the last few weeks. And the PSOE are willing to put all the meat on the grill: the spokesman of the Government, Isabel Celaá, has confirmed this on Friday, after the meeting of the Council of Ministers, that both the rise in pensions and the minimum wage for 2020 will have to wait for it as the Government, thus increasing the pressure on CKD, which refuses to close the agreement with the PSOE and allow the endowment on the day 5, as desired by the socialists. Pensions, as announced, will rise to 0.9% in 2020, equal to the CPI this year. But does not update the level of benefits until it becomes effective, the investiture of Pedro Sanchez, pending the negotiation with CKD. When you have a Government with full powers will be uploaded to the pension retroactively to January 1. Also, the announced rise in the minimum interprofessional wage (SMI), which Celaá has not wanted to quantify and is subject to negotiation with United we Can, will have to wait for the formation of the Government. According to Celaá, will rise as agreed by the trade unions and employers, which could take even more time.
These are the main issues related to the future revaluation of pensions, salaries of officials and the minimum wage.
Pensions. ministers approved on Friday a decree that sets out measures in matters of taxation, cadastral and Social Security in that it points to the rise of pensions according to the CPI, that is to say, 0.9 per cent, in a single movement “in the moment”. Asked about the fact that “millions of people are outstanding” from both the update of the pension as of the SMI, Celaá has been limited to confirm that, in fact, they are measures of “high social interest” and to expect that the “practical response to arrive very soon”, that is to say, that there is an endowment, “as soon as possible”. On the SMI, has reminded Celaá that the PSOE’s proposal is to raise it to the 60% of the average wage “in a legislature,” but that will be the “conversation between the social agents that determine the rise. The Government will then, retroactively. Here is the key negotiation.
Both measures, in any case, will have to wait to Government. The Executive functions, has decided not to constitute a new Government. “We are confident that this will not go beyond January,” point sources of the Executive. The political blockade has ended up affecting pensions, the minimum wage and remuneration of the officers. Already weeks ago that the minister of Labour, Magdalena Valerio, had publicly expressed his doubts about the possibility that a functioning Government could raise pensions by 0.9% of the announced to the European Commission in the budgetary plan for 2020. The criterion normal of the legal profession of the State is that an Executive who does not have full functions may not make budgetary decisions that commit the next. And, finally, that has weighed on the decisions that traditionally have been adopted in recent years when it has been given to this circumstance.
On this occasion, in addition, there are other reasons of a political nature. The decision is an added pressure to the parties who are in doubt whether to support a Government headed by Sanchez. The will to defer these increases it is the policy because the Executive itself that was found last fall a loophole to unblock the funds in the system of financing the autonomous regions, despite being in functions.
As has been confirmed by Celaá, the revaluation of pensions is delayed despite the fact that I could have gone up 0.25%, as set out in the current Social Security law, as written from 2013, and then add 0.65% remaining. To avoid such a rise of 0.25 per cent, the Executive has decided to approve a decree law to suspend the norm to expect that in a few weeks an investiture. When there is a Government formed will be able to upload that to 0.9%, which will have retroactive effect from 1 January. Celaá has justified the rise of once the expense would make it in two, not only of cost, but of logistics infrastructure. In terms of the delay, he remembered that pensions are already recovering purchasing power thanks to the 1.6% increase that was approved for 2019, the year in which the CPI will be below, and has made it clear that the rise of 0.9% will be retroactive to January 1, 2020 once approved.
Salary of the officials. The same thing happens with the salary of the officials. The Government will only approve the raise agreed upon of 2% to public employees when they constitute the new Executive. In this way, the salary enhancement nor you will see the light with the entry of the new year, but will have to wait a few days or a few weeks until it comes out on a endowment. The minister of Territorial Policy and Public service functions, Luis Planas, has already explained some weeks ago that, legally, a functioning Government could not carry out any such increase. But he clarified that this will be earned on January 1.
minimum Wage. By the side of the SMI had not so many doubts legal to approve the raise. Although there are benefits and aids that are linked to their evolution, it seems that the Law of the State does not see obstacles. Here, however, the problems stem from the negotiations to form a new Government and the demands of the social agents. The PSOE and United We are talking to set an objective of SMI for this legislature: the 60% of the average wage. However, on the other hand, trade unions and employers demand that you have with them and not do like last year, when Pedro Sanchez and the leader of we Can, Pablo Churches, agreed to an increase in the floor wage and gave no margin whatsoever to the social dialogue. For 2020, they aim to Work sources, the plan is to extend the 900 euros monthly current and secure the commitment of the new Government to negotiate quickly with trade unions and entrepreneurs, a path that takes the SMI to that 60%. The responsibility of carrying out these new negotiations can be put on a minister of the United we Can if, as has been published, Yolanda Diaz just by accessing the portfolio.
