The European Commission noted this Thursday that it has made “satisfactory progress” in its evaluation of the review of the Recovery Plan requested by Spain in June – through an addendum – and that includes the withdrawal of tolls that The Government had committed to establishing highways from 2024.
“Spain has requested a modification of the measure [peajes], as part of the review of the recovery plan (addendum) that Spain has submitted. The work related to this evaluation of the revised plan, including the modification of the measure, is underway,” the European Commission’s Economy spokesperson, Veerle Nuyts, told EL PERIÓDICO.
The Government continues negotiating with Brussels the addendum to the Recovery Plan presented in June which, above all – in addition to freeing the Government from its initial commitment to implement tolls – should serve to attract an additional 7.7 billion euros to Spain in transfers from European funds. Next Generation and 84,000 million in loans. The objective is to complete these negotiations with the European Commission in the coming weeks, so that it can reach the table of the next Council of EU Finance Ministers (Ecofin) on October 17 for approval, as EL PERIÓDICO has learned.
“Satisfactory progress has been made and constructive discussions are being held with the Spanish authorities to finalize our assessment as soon as possible,” the spokesperson added. Nuyts indicated that, “as is done with all Member States, Brussels will communicate the conclusion of its examination” as soon as it is reached. to that stage.”
Government optimism
This same Tuesday, the acting Spanish Minister of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda, Raquel Sánchez, declared herself “optimistic” that the European Commission will accept the “alternative proposals” that the Government has proposed to avoid introducing tolls on highways.
These “alternative proposals,” he told the media at the headquarters of the European Parliament, include measures “in line with reinforcing others that have already been applied.”such as “incentivize rail transport” or public transport.
“The conditions that existed at the time of proposing this measure are not the same as today,” argued the head of Transportation.
The commitment to tolls is included in the Spanish recovery plan within milestone number 3according to which Spain must create “a payment mechanism for the use of State roads, which will begin to operate from 2024, in accordance with the ‘polluter pays’ principle”, as the document reads. plan.
This milestone is linked, specifically, to the payment of the sixth tranche of the recovery fund, for which Spain would receive 8,000 million euros in direct aid.
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The Government sent the addendum to the recovery plan to Brussels on June 6 and had a period of three months to evaluate it (two initial months and an extension of one month because summer was within the period), but for now it has not published its conclusion.
Spain will win access to the 84,000 million euros allocated in the form of credit and another 10,000 million in direct aid once the revision of the plan receives the green light from the Commission and is then approved by the rest of the Member States.