The general secretary of the PSE-EE, Eneko Andueza, has conveyed to the lehendakari, Imanol Pradales, the advisability of designing "expansive" public accounts for 2027 and of exercising "self-criticism," accompanied by concrete measures, to correct the deficiencies of the educational system highlighted by the latest PISA Report.
Both leaders met this Wednesday at the Lehendakaritza headquarters in Vitoria-Gasteiz, as part of the round of contacts that Pradales is maintaining with the main political, union, and business representatives of Euskadi.
The leader of the PSE-EE, a party that shares the Basque Government with the PNV, has stated that the meeting took place in "a cordial and collaborative atmosphere." He emphasized that this "constructive" tone defines his relationship with the lehendakari, even "in circumstances and moments when we do not agree."
Referring to the differences between PNV and PSE-EE in some areas, he pointed out that his dealings with Pradales "are always cordial even though discrepancies may arise at times," and that, despite these occasional disagreements, both parties maintain "the same roadmap."
Andueza has indicated that he shares with the lehendakari the need for the Basque Government and the rest of the institutions to remain "attentive" to the evolution of international conflicts, has expressed his solidarity with their victims, and has called for monitoring the impact they may have on the Basque citizenry.
He insisted that the institutions of Euskadi must continue to approve initiatives to protect the population, as well as employment and the business fabric of the autonomous community.
In this context, he has requested that the Basque budgets for 2027 be "coherent" with the current situation and with the "dimension" of the challenges facing the country. He stressed that the accounts for the next fiscal year must "grow" and adopt an "expansive" profile in order to "respond decisively" to the needs arising from the economic and social moment.
Public services and social priority
"The priority is to reinforce public services, advance in the welfare state when possible, and not take a step back in employment, health, education, housing, and mobility," he emphasized.
He defended that the Basque Government must be "focused exclusively on that"; that is, on "social priority" and not on "the national priority that sometimes appears to distract us from what really matters." He specified that this warning about the drift towards a "national priority" is directed both at the far-right in the state sphere and at "the abertzale forces" in Euskadi.
The socialist leader has recalled that the autonomous Executive plans to promote in the coming months new instruments to protect the existing housing stock, strengthen public control over the buying and selling of protected housing, and launch the future Social Housing Fund.
He explained that, to ensure the implementation of these measures, "legal changes must be made that are mandatory for incorporation and approval in the Budget Law," as he has conveyed to the lehendakari. He recalled that the Department of Housing, in the hands of the PSE, hopes to reform the Housing Law so that protected homes with temporary qualification located in stressed areas maintain their official protection beyond the initially set deadline.
Likewise, it is contemplated that the transfers of protected housing will be channeled through Alokabide, so that "it is the Basque Government that determines the purchasing person among those who meet the access requirements." "We want to put an end to fraud in these buying and selling operations where an amount is requested, for whatever excuse, above what the regulations set," he emphasized.
He added that the Social Housing Fund, with which it is intended to promote 10,000 new homes in the next two legislatures, could start operating at the beginning of 2027.
PISA Report, Basque language, and transfers
During the meeting, Pradales and Andueza also addressed the poor results of Euskadi's students in the latest PISA report on educational competencies. The head of the PSE-EE expressed his "concern" about the data and asked the lehendakari, and in particular the Department of Education, managed by the PNV, for an exercise of "analysis, self-criticism, and concrete actions to reverse this situation."
Regarding the discrepancies between PNV and PSE-EE regarding the linguistic requirements to access public service in Euskadi, he reiterated that his party maintains the "willingness" to reach an agreement on the decree that will regulate this matter, although he warned that the socialists "will not abandon their principles and their political position in this area."
In relation to the possible changes in competencies in the management of the Port of Pasaia, he admitted that there is still no closed joint position, although they continue to work to achieve an understanding.
Regarding the rest of the pending transfers, he pointed out that he maintains a "constant" dialogue with the central Government and that, in some cases, these are competencies with a "complex" legal fit. He assured that the PSE acts "with honesty and a collaborative spirit" and that the intention of both executives is to bring positions closer so that the Bilateral Cooperation Commission, postponed in July due to lack of agreement, can be held in the coming months.
Finally, he referred to the statements made by Pradales last Monday, when he described the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, as "knocked out" due to the migration crisis in Ceuta. Andueza considered those words "quite exaggerated."
He expressed his desire for the situation in the autonomous city to "be resolved as soon as possible with guarantees," both for the Ceuta population and for the migrants who entered irregularly last July. "We know that with the right and the far-right there is nothing to be done, but I believe that with other social and political agents collaboration is possible," he concluded.