The INE revises upwards the CPI of July to 3.6% due to the increase in fuels and electricity.

The colloquially called “decree on measures to contain the impact of the war in Iran” corresponds to Royal Decree-Law 8/2026, of March 20, on housing rental. As of today, its parliamentary processing is concluded and the initiative has been rejected by the Congress of Deputies in the validation vote. Its subsequent processing as a bill was not agreed upon, so there is no open stage either in the Congress or in the Senate. The decree-law was in force from its publication in the BOE until its repeal due to that parliamentary rejection.

Identification of the decree-law

The text you refer to is:

• Official title: Royal Decree-Law 8/2026, of March 20, on rental measures in response to the economic and social consequences of the War in Iran.
• Rank: Royal Decree-Law.
• Parliamentary identifier in the Congress: 130/000039.
• Publication in the BOE: March 21, 2026, accessible in the BOE.

Previously, the Council of Ministers approved the text in its meeting of March 20, 2026, as recorded in the Council of Ministers reference, where it is explained that the decree-law:

• Establishes an extraordinary extension of up to two years for leases of primary residences that expire before December 31, 2027.
• Imposes an extraordinary limitation on the annual rent update until December 31, 2027, so that, in the absence of agreement, the increase cannot exceed 2% (and in the case of large holders, the 2% applies in any case).

Stages of parliamentary processing

1. Publication and registration

After its approval by the Government and its publication in the BOE on March 21, 2026, the decree-law followed the ordinary parliamentary control process:

• 03/21/2026: publication in the BOE, from which moment Royal Decree-Law 8/2026 came into force.
• 03/24/2026: registration of the initiative in the Congress of Deputies as Royal Decree-Law 8/2026 (file 130/000039).

In parallel, the content was also disseminated through the summary of the Council of Ministers published on the La Moncloa website (Council of Ministers reference).

2. Debate and validation vote

According to Article 86 of the Constitution, the Congress had to decide on the validation or repeal of the decree-law within 30 days.

• 04/28/2026: debate in the Plenary of the Congress and vote on the validation or repeal of Royal Decree-Law 8/2026.
• Vote result:
  • Yes: 166
  • No: 177
  • Abstention: 5

Since more votes were against than in favor, the Congress did not validate the decree-law. This implies its repeal and the closure of the processing as a decree-law. The processing information explicitly states that “on 2026-04-28 the initiative was rejected and the processing concluded”.

3. Publication of the rejection and closure of the file

Once the vote was held and the result proclaimed, the file was completed with the official publication:

• 05/08/2026: publication in the Official Bulletin of the General Courts of the text reporting the rejection of Royal Decree-Law 8/2026, with status “Concluded (publication of rejection)”. That bulletin can be consulted in the Congress PDF: Congress bulletin.

At no time after the vote was its transformation into a bill agreed to continue processing through the ordinary legislative procedure. Therefore:

• There has been no amendment phase to the articles.
• It has not passed to the Senate for further processing.
• There is no resulting law from this decree-law; its course ends with non-validation.

Current situation

In summary, from a parliamentary point of view, the “decree on measures to contain the impact of the war in Iran” (Royal Decree-Law 8/2026) is in the state “processing concluded: rejected by the Congress”. There is no open parliamentary stage nor any plan to continue its processing, unless the Government or groups present in the future a new bill or proposal with similar content, which would start a different procedure from scratch.

The National Institute of Statistics (INE) is the body responsible for the official preparation of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) in Spain. Its competencies cover both the monthly calculation of the index and the methodological design, base update, definition of the sample of products and establishments, and dissemination of results. These functions are supported by its status as the central body of the public statistical function and by the principles of professional independence, impartiality, and statistical secrecy established by law. The following details these competencies and their legal basis.

General legal framework of the INE's statistical competencies

The basic framework is in the Law 12/1989, on the Public Statistical Function, which regulates the planning and preparation of statistics for state purposes. The text indicates that:

• All statistical production for state purposes shall be developed, prepared, and disseminated according to the principles of professional independence, impartiality, objectivity, reliability, statistical secrecy, cost-effectiveness, transparency, specialty, and proportionality.
• The Law transforms the INE into an autonomous body attached to the Ministry competent in economy, endowed with functional capacity to guarantee its operational neutrality and independence in its technical competencies and in preserving statistical secrecy.
• The regulation assigns the INE a central role in the horizontal coordination of the state statistical system and in the preparation of the National Statistical Plan, within which the CPI is included as a statistical operation for state purposes.

The most recent organizational development is in Royal Decree 803/2022, which approves the Statute of the Autonomous Body INE. This Statute establishes that the INE:

• Exercises the functions of general coordination of the statistical services of the General State Administration, and the oversight, control, and supervision of the technical competencies of these services.
• Has the necessary functional capacity to guarantee its operational neutrality and professional independence, especially regarding methodologies, techniques, and dissemination schedule.
• Must ensure compliance with the principles of Regulation (EC) 223/2009 on European statistics and the Code of Good Practice of European Statistics, principles fully applicable to the CPI.

Specific competence on the preparation of the CPI

The INE's specific competence on the CPI is explicitly detailed in Order EHA/3411/2011, which establishes the Consumer Price Index system base 2011. Its preamble recalls that the INE has prepared CPI systems since 1939, periodically adapting weights and methodology.

This order specifies several key functions of the INE regarding the CPI:

• Monthly calculation of the CPI: Article 1 provides that the INE shall prepare monthly Consumer Price Indices based on 2011, starting January 2012. It is an exclusive power: the official CPI for Spain is calculated and published by the INE.
• Definition of population coverage: Article 2 determines that the CPI is prepared considering the expenditure structure of the entire resident population in Spain in family dwellings. It is the INE's responsibility to specify that structure based on surveys such as the Household Budget Survey.
• Methodological design and base change: the preamble states that the INE President proposes the system change process, which includes:
  • The implementation of the new weighting structure.
  • The review of products, municipalities, and establishments where prices are collected.
  • The update of the calculation methodology.
  All this technical design corresponds to the INE within the framework set by the order and the National Statistical Plan.
• Functional classification: Article 3 provides that the CPI uses a functional classification based on the international consumption classification. The INE specifies its practical application (groups, subgroups, index headings).

Other functions related to the CPI

Besides the strict calculation of the index, the regulations imply other competencies of the INE related to the CPI:

• Official dissemination of results: as the body responsible for the statistical operation, the INE sets the schedule, content, and formats for disseminating CPI data, in line with the principles of transparency and independence established in Law 12/1989 and the INE Statute.
• Certificates and legal use of the CPI: although not detailed in the excerpts, other INE resolutions regulate the issuance of CPI certificates, reinforcing its role as the sole official source for contractual, labor, and administrative purposes.
• Integration in the National Statistical Plan: Order EHA/3411/2011 recalls that the base change is required by the National Statistical Plan. This implies that, within that plan, the INE is the executing body of the “CPI” operation, responsible for its design, execution, and continuous improvement.

Overall, the regulatory framework configures the INE as the sole body competent to prepare the official CPI of Spain, with full responsibility over its methodology, data collection, calculation, base update, and dissemination, under principles of professional independence, statistical secrecy, and coordination with the European statistical system.

In the consulted state regulations on the National Response Plan to the war in Ukraine and fuel subsidies, there is currently no expressly regulated “safeguard clause” to reactivate or modulate those aids; therefore, there are no closed legal requirements currently in force. Any activation of a future clause of this type would require first the approval of a regulation (likely a royal decree-law) that precisely defines the objective activation conditions, the competent body, and the time limits. In any case, such activation should respect the constitutional framework (use of royal decree-law for extraordinary and urgent necessity, parliamentary control) and European Union law on State aid and competition. What can be inferred from the already approved regulations is the legal and procedural logic that a safeguard clause linked to fuel price increases would likely follow.

1. Reference regulatory framework on fuels

Fuel subsidy measures have been mainly articulated through:

• Royal Decree-Law 6/2022, of March 29, which establishes the first package of the National Response Plan, including an extraordinary and temporary subsidy on the final price of certain energy products and fuels, and a support mechanism for the electro-intensive industry. It can be consulted in the BOE of Royal Decree-Law 6/2022.
• Royal Decree-Law 11/2022, of June 25, which extends and adjusts those fuel subsidies, introducing technical improvements in their management and monitoring, and strengthening aids linked to the increase in fuel cost. It is available in the BOE of Royal Decree-Law 11/2022.
• Royal Decree-Law 20/2022, of December 27, which approves a sixth package of measures, extends various energy and tax measures, and explicitly mentions the fuel price subsidy as one of the instruments used; it can be seen in the BOE of Royal Decree-Law 20/2022.

These regulations show a common structure: extraordinary and temporary measures, justified by the escalation of energy and fuel prices, approved by the Government via royal decree-law under Article 86 of the Constitution and subject to parliamentary validation. They regulate subsidies, monitoring mechanisms (including the intervention of the National Commission on Markets and Competition to control prices and aid effectiveness), and extensions, but do not define an autonomous “safeguard clause” for future reactivation.

2. What is understood by “safeguard clause” in this context

In economic policy practice, a safeguard clause in a plan against fuel price increases is a provision that allows automatic or government decision-based activation or reactivation of certain measures (for example, fuel subsidies or aid to affected sectors) when certain market conditions are met.

Such a clause usually fulfills three functions:

• Define objective indicators (increase in the average price of certain fuels, evolution of the EU “Oil Bulletin,” etc.).
• Specify the activation act (Council of Ministers agreement by royal decree-law or royal decree) and its scope.
• Establish validity and review limits, as well as submission to controls (parliamentary, competition, budgetary).

The examined regulations currently do not contain a clause with that name specifically linked to fuels, but they do design temporary and extendable mechanisms that illustrate how it would be legally configured.

3. Likely legal requirements to activate a safeguard clause

a) Approval and competent body

For a safeguard clause to exist and be activated, it must be previously included in a norm with sufficient rank (usually a royal decree-law, such as Royal Decree-Law 6/2022). The specific activation would occur through:

• A Council of Ministers agreement, formalized in a royal decree-law if it involves measures with legal rank and there is “extraordinary and urgent necessity” (Art. 86 CE, expressly cited in Royal Decree-Law 6/2022 itself).
• Or, if the clause so provides, an order or royal decree that develops a prior legislative authorization.

b) Objective market conditions

By analogy with the measures already in force, the clause should specify:

• Which fuel prices or indicators are taken as reference (for example, weekly average prices, such as those used in road transport according to the EU “Oil Bulletin,” mentioned in Royal Decree-Law 11/2022).
• During which observation period (weeks or months) the increase must be maintained.
• Whether only the fuel price is considered or also its impact on production costs and economic viability of certain sectors.

Currently, these conditions are not typified as an automatic trigger of a safeguard clause, so they should be set in a future regulatory reform.

c) Compatibility with European State aid regulations

Fuel subsidies and aids are inserted in the European framework of State aid and sectoral funds; Royal Decree-Law 11/2022 mentions, for example, Regulation (EU) 2021/1139 relating to the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund. A safeguard clause activating new aids should foresee:

• That measures respect aid ceilings and intensities set by regulations or European temporary frameworks.
• The possible notification or communication to the European Commission, when not covered by an already approved regime.

d) Parliamentary control and time limits

The use of royal decree-law requires its validation by the Congress of Deputies, published through resolutions such as those recording the validation of Royal Decree-Law 6/2022 or Royal Decree-Law 20/2022. Additionally, Parliament can exercise ongoing control through usual instruments (questions, interpellations, hearings, etc.).

The experience of these regulations indicates that any safeguard would be configured as a temporary and extendable measure, with clear deadlines and the need for periodic evaluation of its effectiveness and its budgetary and price impact.

e) Monitoring and supervision

Finally, the current regulations on fuel subsidies assign the National Commission on Markets and Competition the monitoring of retail prices and subsidy effectiveness, and oblige operators and collaborators to provide necessary information. It is reasonable to think that a safeguard clause would incorporate similar high-frequency monitoring mechanisms as a condition for its activation, maintenance, or deactivation.

In summary: as of today, there are no specific legal requirements established to activate a “safeguard clause” specifically against fuel price increases; its content must be defined in the future regulation that creates it, within the limits set by the Constitution, EU law, and the experience accumulated with royal decree-laws responding to the energy crisis.