Sánchez's gesture to the PNV: he accepts that the Basque Country participates in the management of airports

MadridLehendakari Imanol Pradales announced from Moncloa an agreement with the Spanish president so that the Basque Country can participate in the management of airports "for the first time in history". It was a long and historic demand of Basque nationalism. "Until today, Euskadi had neither voice nor vote in airport matters and from today it will be able to begin to participate in decision-making affecting Basque airports," celebrated Imanol Pradales after meeting with Pedro Sánchez and holding a new meeting of the State-Basque Cooperation Bilateral Commission. This will crystallize in the creation of a bilateral body for "collaboration, coordination, and management" of airports that will allow "improving and boosting" the airports' capabilities, "influencing" investments and the "plans that define them" and "improving" connectivity and airport services.

However, Imanol Pradales avoided giving further specifics: "We will get into the details when the body is up and running," he justified. Subsequently, the Minister of Territorial Policy, Ángel Víctor Torres, limited himself to celebrating that the agreement will allow for "strategic cooperation." He did not detail how this would translate either. Likewise, the lehendakari highlighted that the two executives have signed a "political agreement" for the transfer of six new matters to Euskadi as a result of the "dialogue" and "negotiation" of recent weeks.

Someone who will surely want to say something about the airports is Aena, the Spanish airport operator, which has never looked favorably upon the transfer of airport management to the State. "It would be null," affirmed again the president of Aena, Maurici Lucena, just two months ago, even though the company has 51% of its share capital in the hands of the State. Lucena made these remarks after the debate was reignited in Catalonia – this is a repeated demand of pro-independence parties. In this context, the Government of Salvador Illa committed to ERC in exchange for votes to invest him as president to advance in the creation of an Airport Authority in Catalonia that has a say in this management. At the beginning of the year, the executive council agreed to promote this new body so that Catalonia can have "comprehensive governance" of the airport system, reportsNuria Rius.

Six more competences

What other transfers have Moncloa and Euskadi agreed upon? Three stand out. As Imanol Pradales explained, Euskadi will acquire the functions of "surveillance, inspection, and control" in inland and external waters – in commercial and recreational fishing – and, regarding driving licenses, it gains competence over medical examination centers and road safety re-education centers. Furthermore, it has been agreed to "advance cooperation" in the area of private security services to "increase" Euskadi's capabilities in training or licensing.

On the other hand, they have agreed on a "financial cooperation framework" between the Official Credit Institute (ICO) and the Basque Institute of Finance to "improve access to business financing" and promote "joint actions" to "improve access to financing" and support the development of industrial and business projects for small and medium-sized industrial enterprises. Finally, the management of subsidies for the contracting of combined agricultural insurance will be transferred to the Basque Country.