Feijóo promises business leaders "more GDP and less Official State Gazette"

BurgosThe president of the People's Party (PP), Alberto Núñez Feijóo, took advantage of his speech at the 28th National Congress of Family Businesses in Burgos to flatter the business representatives in attendance, who gave him a standing ovation. "More GDP and less Official State Gazette," the PP leader summarized, referring to the gross domestic product (GDP) – that is, growth – and the Official State Gazette –that is, regulation–. He also promised to review "the 97 tax increases," including social security contributions, of the current Spanish government and to implement tax cuts if he wins the elections. In any case, he did not specify which taxes he would lower.

It was a speech in which he criticized the "triumphalism" of the Spanish government, which contrasts with that of the Minister of Industry, Jordi Hereu, who pointed out that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has just raised Spain's growth forecast to 2.9% for this year. And, at the same time, like Feijóo, he highlighted the role of family businesses and the importance of their long-term, deep-rooted vision. This event to open the congress was presided over by King Felipe VI, who recalled that 22 years ago he chaired the sixth congress for the first time and praised the characteristics of this type of business.

But it was the Popular Party leader who didn't waste the opportunity to make commitments if he wins the election, explaining that taxes could be lowered, without specifying which ones, if they were spent more efficiently. In fact, he admitted that more is being collected, but "without anyone knowing why." He criticized a model in which "the same people who demand justification for every expense" are the ones who didn't "see corruption coming close."

"Distrust and Interventionism"

After listing what he considers to be economic problems, such as the decline in working hours and a general and female unemployment rate that exceeds the European average, Núñez Feijóo criticized a government like the current one, which, in his opinion, "fosters distrust, bureaucracy, and interventionism." He also promised "rigor, honesty, fair taxes, and trust."

Furthermore, in addition to stating that "a subsidized country has no future," he advocated a "moral alliance" with workers, businesses, and society to have "clear rules, reasonable taxes, and trust." In his opinion, Pedro Sánchez's administration has created the impression that work and effort lose value, and when this happens, "the economy collapses."

Feijóo stated that the current government disguises its policies as progressivism, and it cannot be justified, he continued, "that those who work pay more and more and the State spends increasingly less." In his opinion, "when effort doesn't translate into a better quality of life, frustration grows." And in this critical context, he placed the lack of a state budget for three years and asked the audience: "Could you go three years without a budget?"

The Popular Party leader also criticized bureaucracy and asserted that, at the moment, "it's harder to do things right than wrong." In this regard, he recalled the analysis by the Institute of Economic Studies (IEE), think tank of the CEOE, according to which 1.3 million rules and regulations were published last year, which amounts to 3,500 pages of the Official State Gazette (BOE) per day. "For every new rule, we will repeal three and reduce the information requirements for companies," he said.

At the same event, the president of the Family Business Institute (IEF), Ignacio Rivera, reiterated two of the major problems affecting competitiveness, which he said are absenteeism and the difficulty in finding talent. He also referred to a study conducted with McKinsey that reveals that family businesses create more direct employment than others and are three times more sustainable.