Feijóo calls the Sabadell takeover bid "frivolous": "It's not serious."

BarcelonaThe People's Party (PP) has so far avoided taking an open position on BBVA's takeover bid for Banc Sabadell. Therefore, this Tuesday all eyes were on the party's leader, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, who participated in the Círculo de Economía conference in Barcelona. Feijóo also did not explain what he thinks about this process—he said his opinion is "irrelevant"—but he did state: "I like banking competition." He did openly express his opposition to the matter. The public consultation proposed this Monday by Spanish President Pedro Sánchez"I don't think it's serious," Feijóo argued, calling the consultation a "frivolity unbecoming of a eurozone economy."

In fact, the PP leader believes that if the Spanish government uses it to veto the takeover bid, it will be an "arbitrary" decision because the National Commission on Markets and Competition (CNMC) has already given the green light. "If [the Spanish government] uses the consultation to distance itself from the CNMC, the accusation of arbitrariness will immediately arise," he warned. The PP leader recalled that it is a process that is not "included" in the law and that it sets "a precedent" for evaluating future mergers. "I am concerned that the government thinks these decisions can be made arbitrarily," he stressed. The PP leader also lamented that the Spanish government has not "led" the reasons for "authorizing or discouraging the merger": "Governing is having an opinion."

"In such serious and sensitive matters, deviating from the law and inventing a procedure, when it's not regulated, has never happened in our country," Feijóo criticized, accusing Sánchez of launching a "populist message" on a "technical and sensitive" issue. After Sánchez announced the referendum, the PP was quick to oppose it, and its deputy economic secretary, Juan Bravo, used irony when he demanded that the Spanish government turn the referendum into an early election. At a press conference, Bravo also didn't take a position on the takeover bid itself, but he did express his reluctance: "The PP will be against [the takeover bid] if the guarantees" of competition and access to financing for the self-employed and SMEs are not respected.

The president of the CEOE (Employers' Association), Antonio Garamendi, also disapproves of the public consultation. He believes it "disqualifies" the decision of the National Commission on Markets and Competition (CNMC). In an interview on Telecinco, Garamendi stressed that it is "incomprehensible." "We're going for pure assembly-style politics. I don't understand it, and I won't go into the nitty-gritty, because the nitty-gritty is the Spanish government. The law states that it has the power to decide whether there is a purchase, or not [...], but what is incomprehensible is that it is based on a consultation for this issue, because then consultations would have to be held for everything," Garamendi stated. The public consultation on the takeover bid announced Monday by Pedro Sánchez will be open starting today, Tuesday, and the Minister of Economy, Carlos Cuerpo, is expected to provide more details this afternoon to the Círculo de Economía (Economic Circle). Núria Rius Montaner.

The energy blackout

Beyond the takeover bid, Alberto Núñez Feijóo used his speech at the Cercle to once again take a frontal attack on the Spanish government, also for its handling of the energy blackout. The PP leader accused Sánchez of having a "triumphalism problem" and of having generated "distrust" among citizens and investors. Feijóo, in this regard, advocated for an external audit to "determine responsibilities." The conservative leader took the opportunity to defend extending the useful life of nuclear power plants, which he considers compatible with renewable energy: "Leading the transition does not mean ignoring the technical needs that are required today."

The financing model

As he did two years ago at the Círculo de Economía (Economic Circle), the PP president has once again advocated a reform of the regional financing model. However, the context is very different. In May 2023, Feijóo was advocating for it with presidential aspirations and without the Socialists having agreed with ERC to establish financing for Catalonia that would allow it to collect all taxes. It is precisely this agreement that Feijóo focused on this Tuesday: "I believe in reforming the financing model, not in breaking it up." The conservative leader once again attacked Pedro Sánchez for having agreed exclusively with Catalonia on a new model and not having discussed it with the other autonomous communities. Feijóo expressed a rejection that is inconsistent with the position of the person who invited him, because the Círculo de Economía (Economic Circle) has endorsed the new financing model for Catalonia.