The Collective of Affected by the Minimum Vital Income has sent this statement to Demócrata, which we reproduce literally:
"The Government's decision not to accept the recommendations made by the Ombudsman on the reimbursement procedures for the Minimum Vital Income (IMV) has reawakened the controversy surrounding the functioning of this benefit and has increased pressure from associations and platforms of affected individuals.
Various groups denounce that thousands of IMV beneficiaries are receiving claims to return amounts received in previous years, in some cases linked to administrative reviews carried out years after the aid was granted. The organizations maintain that some of these situations originate from management errors, delays in updating data, or discrepancies in review processes.
According to the affected platforms, the economic claims are having a strong impact on families in vulnerable situations, who face problems of indebtedness, seizures, and difficulties in covering basic expenses. The associations also warn of an increase in legal uncertainty among recipients of the benefit.
The Ombudsman, led by Ángel Gabilondo, recently conveyed a series of recommendations to the Executive aimed at reducing the harm caused by reimbursement procedures. Among the proposed measures were regulatory modifications intended to strengthen the guarantees of affected individuals and limit the consequences of retroactive reviews.
However, the Executive decided not to adopt these proposals, a position that has been criticized by various social organizations linked to IMV beneficiaries. These groups consider that the current system for reviewing benefits is generating situations of special vulnerability for families with little economic capacity.
The objective of the IMV
The Minimum Vital Income was approved with the objective of strengthening social protection and reducing levels of poverty and exclusion. However, associations of affected individuals maintain that the control and regularization model applied in certain cases is causing uncertainty among some beneficiaries, especially when reimbursement claims occur several years after receiving the aid.
The platforms are demanding a reform of the regulations governing the IMV to eliminate retroactivity in reviews considered undue and to guarantee greater legal certainty. Likewise, they ask parliamentary groups to promote legislative initiatives aimed at modifying the reimbursement and review mechanisms of the benefit.
In this context, the groups have urged the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party to reconsider its position and to promote legal changes that incorporate the recommendations of the Ombudsman.
The debate on the scope of administrative reviews and the refund procedures for the Minimum Vital Income continues to gain political and social relevance, in a context marked by demands for greater protection for families in vulnerable situations and by the need to balance the control of public aid with the legal guarantees of its beneficiaries."