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It has already been common practice to associate the bloc’s biggest risks with Italy. But now officials in Germany, which is considered the economic engine of the region and which pays more money to the European Union (EU) COVID-19 recovery fund, are alarmed by how badly Spain is dealing with the pandemic.
The sharp increase in the number of cases since late summer has sparked a heated controversy between the parties; Officials in Madrid’s center-right regional administration are fiercely opposed to the new restrictions imposed by the socialist leadership. In the end, all this caused a spiral of crisis.
“It is a political war, and politicians are campaigning instead of taking united action against the pandemic,” said Manuel de Castras, a doctor at Madrid’s 12 de Octubre hospital and a union leader. “We lack leaders and a clear chain of command.”
For many years, officials in other European countries allowed themselves not to see the pitfalls and dysfunctions in Spain while the economy grew without too much stagnation. But after the eurozone’s fourth-largest economy plunged into an unprecedented recession in Europe, they are forced to take a closer look at the country.
According to a source in Berlin, who was familiar with the discussions in the government, he was not jokingly concerned about the knock-on effect in other member states, including Germany.
Pedro Sanchezas
After being hit by the virus, public administrations around the world have had a difficult test. Spain and Italy became the main epicenters of the pandemic in Europe. While Italy appears to be successfully controlling the second wave, the same cannot be said for Spain.
Spain has not had a stable government since 2015. But, in part, there are reasons to hope that the economy can cope with the challenges, given that the country, supported by strong consumption and record tourist flows, has so far grown on automatic pilot .
The country’s prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, also felt reassured this summer when he prematurely announced a victory against the virus. Since then, politicians have been trying to score points for themselves and avoid accusations of new restrictions on daily life as the number of infections gradually increases.
As soon as the Spanish capital became a new global hotbed for coronavirus. Spain suffered almost 18 percent in the second quarter. recession, and the situation could get worse if the government does not take decisive action soon.
Meanwhile, the economic costs are increasing.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned that Spain’s recovery is in jeopardy and that the risks are “markedly downward.” The Spanish central bank forecasts that the country’s economy could contract 12.6 percent this year.
EU leaders rushed to help badly affected countries like Spain regain economic growth by approving $ 750 billion. but current disagreements may delay the disbursement of funds.
In addition to the usual problems that plague most countries, how to balance the needs of employers and workers, young people and retirees, Spain faces two key questions that the government is reluctant to address: what to do with the monarchy and Catalonia.
Opposition to the royal family is fueled by a decade of problems that accompanied former King Juan Carlson for a decade, but the opening of this constitutional pain could trigger a new debate on the referendum on Catalan independence.
Spain is vulnerable. The painful consequences of the financial crisis have already destroyed the old two-party system, which for thirty-five years has ensured a smooth transition of power between the left and the right.
Such fragmentation is making it difficult to form a new consensus on how Spain should be governed, allowing a series of weak minority administrations to function.
© Zuma Press / Scanpix
Friction within the Spanish government structure undermines efforts to curb the spread of COVID-19, according to 85%. respondents to the GAD3 survey commissioned by the newspaper ABC.
The country has had four governments in five years and is currently operating on the basis of the 2018 budget drawn up by the previous Conservative government. Millions of Madrilenians are now subject to the severe restrictions on daily life that came into force following talks between Sánchez and the leader of the Madrid region.
The head of the capital region, the conservative Isabel Díaz Ayuso, initially threatened not to impose restrictions.
“We are the only country in the world where the government only blames the capital,” ID Ayuso said last Thursday. “In other countries, presidents roll up their sleeves and work hard with their administrations, blaming no one, no matter who their subordinates are.”
When the pandemic struck in March this year, Sánchez declared a state of emergency, allowing his government to assume the powers of regional administrations.
As the spread of the virus slowed a bit, it allowed them to control the opening of regional economies, but as students returned to school, the scale of infections increased again, especially in Madrid.
Sánchez asked ID Ayus to stop the virus. This, in turn, accused his left-wing national government of excluding his region because it said it was led by the main conservative opposition group, the Popular Party.
Later, the Minister of Health, Salvador Illa, called on the nation to pray that “science must be listened to” and “this is not an ideological struggle.”
ID Ayuso’s management of the pandemic has been controversial from the start. In May, she herself became infected with the coronavirus and found herself in luxury apartments in Madrid.
The head of the regional public health authority resigned because he did not agree with ID Ayus’ crisis management.
Medical professionals, meanwhile, say there is a lack of contact between trackers, doctors and nurses.
“We are pressed like lemons,” said Paloma Tamame, an ambulance doctor in Madrid. “There comes a time when patience, patience and strength run out.”
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