New Spanish Law Aimed At Boosting Economy
Last Friday saw the Spanish government approve a new bill which is aimed at boosting the nation’s productivity and competitiveness over the next ten years by reducing reliance on the construction industry and focusing it instead on the more innovative industries such as renewable energy and biotechnology. In its attempts to increase exports, make an impact on the country’s huge budget deficit and ensure long-term growth, the government will also be targeting the food, motor and aeronautical industries.
The Economic Sustainability Law is backed by 25 billion euros worth of funding which, it is hoped, will help to lift the country out of the economic doldrums. By discouraging new construction and at the same time offering incentives to support Spanish property rental and loans to make both residential and commercial buildings more energy efficient, as well as providing money for home refurbishments, the law also aims to shore up Spain’s depressed housing market and create employment opportunities. With an unemployment rate which currently stands at 20%, double the rate of two years ago and the highest in the European Union, the government intends presenting further new measures next week which will concentrate on creating short-term growth in employment.
Following a Cabinet meeting which was held in Seville, Spain’s Prime Minister, Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, was reported to have said that the new law is essential for the country’s present, as well as its future, and that it ‘implies being more innovative, more competitive…and highly global.’
Spain’s budget deficit currently sits at four times the limit allowed by European Union rules and, with 45% of those under the age of 25 within the ranks of the unemployed, the government is facing a tough battle to set the country on the road to recovery. In addition to the new Economic Sustainability Law, spending cuts and an uplift in the retirement age have also been announced as part of the package to restore Spain to economic health.
