It is very likely that the next general elections will be in 2027, when we will have had nine years of Sánchez governments. The natural erosion of power alone should make it likely that the elections would give way to a government that, unfortunately, will be heavily influenced by the Vox-Aznar-Ayuso triplet. Due to circumstances well known today, the probability of this happening has increased. A decidedly bad situation for Catalonia. In this situation, our best policies for the next two years are those that reduce the likelihood of a bad outcome and those that prepare us for a possibly adverse future. It would be pointless at this time to promote measures that would gratify us emotionally, but that were also reversible and conducive to a government conditioned by the triplet.
Along these lines, it is important to ensure that projects already assumed, announced, well-defined, and in the process of legal articulation are well specified before the elections. Projects such as Cercanías de Cataluña, the Infrastructure Consortium (which should establish the transfer ex-ante from state budget funds) or, in an area I know well enough, the establishment in Barcelona of the German technology center Fraunhofer-Spain, or the formalization of the Innofab project (semiconductors).
Beyond that, there are four aspects that I consider critical:
1. Budgets. It would be wise for the political initiative of the next two years to be well organized by approved budgets, both in the State and in Catalonia. We cannot afford to miss even a shred of opportunity to deploy public action with the greatest possible effectiveness. It is clear that this will not be the case without budgets. Without budgets, things can be done, but the sense of purpose, coherence, and determination that a budget provides will be lacking. We will improvise too much and argue too much if it is not quickly established how we spend the resources at our disposal.
2. Consolidate the state of autonomy. Funding is the primary consideration. Public resources for welfare state needs must increase significantly. The resistance, which I welcome, to the 5% commitment for defense has been made in the name of this need. But the government has two things pending. One is to set a figure. I believe the increase should be 2% of GDP—it should be achieved in a not too long period. The other is to channel these resources through the regional financing system, which should certainly be minimally reformed to facilitate its absorption in a way that guarantees a level of equalization greater than the current one.
3. A functioning administration. To sustain a future full of challenges, Catalonia needs a well-functioning administration. It's not working well now. Sometimes gradually, and sometimes hastily, we have become entangled in processes of administrative complexity that, with a desire to prevent any irregular action from being possible, end up achieving the result by means of not allowing any action at all. Or not allowing it in the indicated time. This is a fact our leaders are well aware of and are working hard at. In particular, today, from the Presidency (Ramió Commission) and Health (CAIROS Committee, chaired by Manuel del Castillo). The initial indications of their work are promising. Hopefully, they constitute an important step toward a more agile administration. In any case, experience shows that we must be vigilant against unintended consequences. For example, accreditation for being a public manager could, as has been the case in the university world, become a serious obstacle to the reintegration of talent abroad today. I add that the problem of the lack of administrative agility is also Spanish and at the same intensity (it will be executed all the Next Generation? Will it be done well?). But it's more serious for us because Spain will survive if it isn't agile, and the Generalitat, who knows.
4. The Tax Agency of Catalonia.We must strengthen it. The more solid it is, the more likely it is to end up managing all the taxes collected in Catalonia. Starting with personal income tax. Strengthening it means, above all, preserving its independence—sharing information with the state agency—and growing within a framework of quality. The ATC must have highly qualified personnel and top-level tax talent. We must prevent it from specializing in the least qualified levels of tax work. It's good for it to grow, but it's more important for it to grow well.
