Since the fortunate end of ETA terrorism, the Basque Country has lost the media prominence it enjoyed since the Transition, but this does not mean its political conflict with the Spanish State has ceased to exist. The political struggle for greater self-government has historically been led by the Basque Nationalist Party (PNV), although in recent years the pragmatic shift of EH Bildu has also led the radical Basque nationalist left to join the fray. Basque society is so convinced that negotiation is the right path, after the trauma of political violence, and that to optimize this negotiation it is necessary to strengthen its own parties that the PNV and Bildu together hold 65% of the votes in the Basque Parliament and 54 of the 75 seats. On the 16th, the Basque and Spanish governments, within the framework of the Joint Transfer Commission, signed the transfer of five new powers to the Basque Country: Maritime Rescue, the management of the Barakaldo Machinery Verification Center, non-contributory family benefits, unemployment benefits, and school insurance. It was also approved that the Basque Country will manage unemployment benefits starting January 1, 2027, meaning that the SEPE (State Public Employment Service) offices will become part of the Basque Lanbide network (in Catalonia, there is a dual network of the SEPE and the Generalitat's OTGs for active employment policies). It is highly significant that all these powers have taken 45 years to be transferred, despite being enshrined in an organic law such as the Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia.

"The proposed organic law establishing the Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia and repealing Organic Law 4/1979, of December 18, on the Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia, was approved by 120 votes in favor and 15 votes against."

On September 30, 2005, a major national pact was sealed, making the new Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia possible. The context at that time could be summarized as follows: there was economic prosperity, the first tripartite coalition governed in Catalonia with Pasqual Maragall as president, CiU was the leading force in Parliament with 46 deputies after winning the elections against all odds, and in Spain, Rodríguez Zapatero's PSOE governed after the war in Iraq and the Iraq wars. And an additional, no less important fact: Zapatero had solemnly promised that he would endorse the Statute of Autonomy that emerged from the Catalan Parliament.