Spain worried about delay in agreeing terms for EU pandemic fund

SPAIN’S Minister for the Economy Nadia María Calviño has indicated that discussions are still taking place concerning disbursement of the European Union’s coronavirus recovery fund, of which Spain is one of the largest potential recipients.

The problem appears to be with regards to control and oversight of the use of the funds which were supposed to be distributed early in the New Year in order to help kickstart members economies.

Speaking to American Bloomberg TV the minister said “We are doing our utmost to accelerate this process so that we can start the implementation of the recovery plan on January 1, 2021.”

She was very upbeat in her view of the Spanish economy going forward and suggested that market confidence in Spain is strong and that the ruling minority Government would shortly be able to finalise the 2021 budget which would incorporate disbursement of the European Union funds.

In the meantime, the European Central Bank is buying up Government Bonds and this not only allows countries like Spain to reduce its borrowing from more expensive sources but means that it is able to reduce its borrowing forecast by almost €15 billion during 2020.

The problem in the short term, with so many commitments to support furloughed workers, pay social security, guarantee company bank loans and still run the country, the Government can’t just keep printing money and needs to receive the European Union funds earlier rather than later.