Seven-year terms (extendable) and the end of arbitrary selection: the Government approves the public executive law
The executive approves the law that will allow putting an end to party appointments
BarcelonaThe Government approved this Tuesday, before leaving for vacation, one of the projects it has most championed. It is the law of professional public management, which aims to put an end to the arbitrary selection of public managers and limit their mandate. The President of the Generalitat, Salvador Illa, presented the regulation a year ago together with the professional entities that support it, and this Tuesday the executive has presented the details of a regulation that seeks to end the discretion with which, currently, parties choose the people who hold the positions of general directors and deputy directors of the Government of the Generalitat. Thus, the regulation foresees that selection processes will be based on "merit and suitability" and sets a maximum term of seven years (extendable) for mandates. In total, the regulation would affect about 727 senior positions: 320 general directors and 407 deputy directors.
The law, therefore, attempts to put an end to the rotation of positions every time the political color of the government changes. Initially, selection will be made based on the "merit, capacity, publicity, and suitability" of the candidates, and the processes will be evaluated by a new "independent qualification body" composed of "people of recognized prestige in public management and human resources" appointed by the Government, which will have parity representation. This body will propose three candidates, and the department in question will make the selection. Among the requirements to apply for the process are having a university degree and, for deputy general directors, also being a civil servant. Furthermore, knowledge of written and oral Catalan will also be required.
Mandates will be for seven years, but can be extended for another seven years based on a "favorable evaluation of the results obtained" by each manager; they will not need to undergo a new selection process, but will require a report justifying their "suitability" for the extension. Can they be dismissed? A manager cannot be dismissed "freely"; it must always be for "legally established causes," such as the end of the mandate, an unfavorable evaluation, or a voluntary resignation.
The results of the activity of these managers will be evaluated during their mandate, and their continuity in office will depend on the "fulfillment" of the set objectives. From here, a variable remuneration is also established that can reach up to 15% of the fixed salary in case of a favorable evaluation.
A 20% exception
The law also provides for several categories of public managers: managerial direction, which are general and service directorates (senior positions normally appointed by political confidence); operational direction, which refers to general sub-directorates occupied by civil servants (although until now they were also chosen by political designation) and public sector institutional managers. All these positions would be subject to these new selection processes, but each government can leave up to a maximum of 20% out for the "essentially political functional profile".
Furthermore, not all senior positions in the Generalitat will be subject to this law; it will not apply to public entities such as the Catalan Institute of Health (ICS), because it has its own regulations, nor to the Research Centers of Catalonia (CERCA), the Audiovisual Council of Catalonia (CAC), the Catalan Finance Institute, and the Catalan Data Protection Agency.
The regulation is part of the public administration reform promoted by the Government since the beginning of the legislature and has the consensus of several professional entities represented in the Forum of Entities for the Reform of the Administration (FERA), which brings together dozens of associations that have been demanding this modification for a long time.
"The law is part of the Government's global strategy to transform the administration of the Generalitat and will allow us to address generational change in government and the attraction and retention of talent [...] Among the objectives is also the professionalization of the public management function," defended the Government spokesperson, Sílvia Paneque, at a press conference. Now the law will have to be processed in Parliament and Paneque is confident of having "broad consensus". In parallel, the Government will prepare the Statute of Professional Public Management, which will serve to implement the regulation.