Rate hike that forces the Spanish economic turnaround

A quarter point rise in interest rates was taken for granted.

But the

does not want there to be any doubt that it is going to fight with all means against runaway inflation and, in a decision with enormous implications, surprised with the 0.5% increase approved this Thursday.

The era of money so cheap that it seemed to be worth nothing is over.

And it won't be because

n't been warning about it for months.

His has been like the story of

;

governments such as

They preferred to look the other way.

Economic agents repeated that rates were going to rise, for the first time in 11 years, and that

should be prepared with adjustments, control of public spending and realistic fiscal consolidation plans because what we can face is

.

And it is that we are

at the end of last year, some 1.46 billion euros, a record that we reached last May.

And the Independent Authority for Fiscal Responsibility underlines that, if the current economic policy is followed, in the coming years it will reach 140%.

.

For now, this turn of the ECB will greatly increase the cost of the Administrations for placing this debt and will complicate the access of countries such as Spain to the markets.

He also hid this harsh reality

during the recent

, in which, however, he brought out the political artillery to try to recover some oxygen after the collapse of the

in

with the announcement of a new battery of anti-crisis measures.

And it is undeniable that every responsible government must implement measures to mitigate the difficult situation of those most affected by a situation like the one we are going through.

But embracing populism to boast of the approval of a large social shield without adopting fiscal rebalancing and economic restructuring initiatives such as those recommended, for example, by the

, it can be very expensive for all of us.

It remains to be seen how the

, brand new

of the PSOE, which would commit serious irresponsibility if it does not present

a spending ceiling -the State budget limit to prepare the 2023 General Budgets- with the realism required by the new ECB guidelines.

The rise of 50 points in one fell swoop has not been seen for 22 years, which shows how worrying the situation is.

Of course, the body that directs the monetary policy of the Eurozone had to choose between fright or death.

.

What remains to be seen is to what extent it will affect economic growth.

Citizens with mortgages or who have to ask for loans are going to suffer from the decision and, from the outset, they are presumably drops in consumption and a slowdown in production.

For all these reasons, Spain is forced to make an urgent economic change.

To continue reading for free

Sign inSign up

Or

and you will have access to all the web content of El Mundo