48 hours before the debate on the validation or repeal of the first of the two royal decree-laws approved to mitigate the consequences of the Iran war takes place, the Government seems to have its numbers add up.
The Executive has tied down the "yes" of the majority of its partners and Junts has announced that it conditions its support on the approval of a non-law proposition (PNL) on fiscal measures to address the tax fatigue suffered by the middle class, workers, self-employed, and small business owners, which is debated this Tuesday and will be voted on Thursday. That same day, an Extraordinary Plenary Session has been convened to address the Royal Decree-Law.
The socialists have no reason not to support the initiative of the separatists. The PNL, which among other issues, asks to remove the VAT for self-employed individuals who invoice less than 85,000 euros, has no binding character, and is a mere measure of political orientation.
Consequently, the Government's accounts would balance for the first package of measures in response to the Iran war, without needing to count on the PP, which had asked to delay the vote on the Royal Decree-Law.
Remove the text
Although neither PP nor Vox have yet advanced the sense of their vote, after Junts' announcement, it is already indifferent. With the votes of the investiture bloc, the abstention of Podemos and the yes of the independentists, the Royal Decree-Law will be validated this Thursday.
While, the spokesperson for the Popular Group, Ester Múñoz, has recognized that among the measures approved by the Council of Ministers there are some of those proposed by the PP, she has also criticized that it includes issues such as "the closure of nuclear power plants" that her party does not have to accept.
The proposal of the popular ones would involve the Government delaying the vote to broaden the negotiation margin or withdrawing it. Among the issues that the main opposition party finds lacking in the current wording is the deflation of the Personal Income Tax: "Inflation is going to eat up the aid approved by the Government". Múñoz has asked to take advantage of the month in which these measures are in force to negotiate a new text agreed between both parties, however, after Junts' move, this proposal is now wet paper.
Unease among the allies
On the other hand, Podemos was the first party of the investiture bloc to distance itself from the Royal Decree-Law. In a press conference from Congress, its parliamentary spokesperson Ione Belarra, has ratified the abstention this Thursday: "It is neither a social shield, nor is it a response plan."
For the purple formation, the set of measures are insufficient, "it is a massive tax cut," and in her opinion, it responds to right-wing postulates. Belarra has insisted that they will continue demanding the Government to cap prices: "It is the only solution".
They have also expressed their reservations even though they voted yes in Compromís. Their support for the Royal Decree-Law is a yes with nuances, a "critical yes," they hint from the party. In general terms, the partners deem the measures "insufficient," but they will endorse this first package.