The former Italian Prime Minister, Paolo Gentiloni, participates for the first time in the Davos Forum with his new portfolio of Economic Affairs in the European Commission and is already working on a easing of the euro deficit rules, which will also apply in Spain .

In conversation with EL MUNDO, apart from the debates of the World Economic Forum, the successor of Pierre Moscovici, hopes that the Spanish Government can finally present its new budget plan "as soon as possible" and assures that in Spain its intention is to achieve , as in others from other countries, "a difficult balance." "We must comply with the rules and also prevent the Budget from aggravating the slowdown," he says.

It defends the current model of control of budgetary stability in the countries of the Eurozone. "It's a good model, but we have to be careful that it doesn't produce procyclical policies." That is to say, that does not force to accentuate the economic cycle of the moment that, currently in Spain, is of deceleration.

This approach favors the plans of the Spanish Government that advocates that approving a Budget in 2020 with a structural adjustment of 0.65% of the Gross Domestic Product (about 7.8 billion) would complicate the economic slowdown. In the same Davos Forum, the managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Kristalina Georgieva, presented on Monday a forecast report that worsens those of Spain at a growth rate of 1.6% in 2020, half already That two years ago.

The strong structural deficit - foreign to the cycle - that Spain maintains makes it necessary to apply the rules and demand that there be an adjustment that will entail restriction on spending and, according to the Government, more income, but Gentiloni puts an emphasis on avoiding harming higher economic growth to that of his predecessor Pierre Moscovici. In any case, we must wait. «What we have for now is that I had a good conversation with Nadia Calviño at the beginning of this week to tell her that we are waiting for the presentation of the new budget plan».

For now, highlight the positive. « In the European Commission we are glad that in Spain there is finally a Government with full powers to present Budgets , which is a novelty. Now he is empowered to present a coherent and strategic budget that we will discuss when it comes to us ».

The former Italian Prime Minister, expects it "as soon as possible", but assumes that "the deadlines is something that corresponds to the Spanish Government." And he says that when the document finally arrives in Brussels, "we will adopt the usual dialogue and flexibility methods in our economic supervision model in the talks ." So confess that Brussels has not accepted the initial approach of the Minister of Finance, María Jesús Montero, of not elaborating the Budgets until knowing what margin gives Brussels. After Calviño's trip to Brussels, the Government published the ministerial order to start the work. Gentiloni wants the budget plan first and then discuss it, not the other way around.

The President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, gave importance on January 14 to the fact that there is a new commissioner in charge of monitoring the Spanish accounts: «The economic situation has changed, and also the budgetary stability, and the Commission has changed in Europe and the economic commissioner and, therefore, we have to negotiate with them the new path of stability , because political and economic circumstances have changed, ”he said to justify requesting a softening. Gentiloni nevertheless shares his new responsibility with the already veteran Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis, less in favor of flexibilizing.

For now, both are already working on a review of the rules that will be presented on February 5. Gentiloni explains that it is "f acilitar investments for climate change" , which has been a predominant issue in this week's Davos Forum discussions. In the Brussels analysis it will not be the same to accumulate deficit for uncontrolled current expenses than for investments that the European Union considers strategic for what it calls the Green Deal.

And there will be not only changes to the budget stability rules, but also to the Competition. «We are going to review our policy regarding state aid. This does not mean that we abandon the logic of the defense of competition in Europe that has been carried out so far, because it is a winning model , the review will be strictly related to the environmental struggle, ”says the Italian.

He gives as an example that "millions of service stations will be needed for electric cars that will probably need state investment." In this case, Vice President Margrethe Vestager will be in charge of presenting the proposal to the European Commission and will "fine tune the elements to be modified". According to Gentiloni, the idea is to "study well the consequences of any measure related to climate change".

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  • Spain
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