The Madrid community demands 650 million euros from the central government in advance payments
The Economy, Finance, and Employment Councilor of the Community of Madrid, Rocío Albert, announced on Thursday that the central government owes the region 650 million euros in advance payments, a figure expected by the end of June. Albert argued that these funds «would have been much more useful if they had been dedicated to education, health, and other public services» instead of remaining in the central government’s coffers. During the control session of the Madrid Assembly Plenary, the councilor criticized the government for not updating the advance payments, a measure that she believes could have been easily implemented. According to Albert, this lack of updating has allowed the government to save 900 million euros that should have been distributed among the autonomous communities, forcing them to incur debt or face cash flow problems. The councilor accused the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, of using these funds to «cover up his shame» and hide the true situation of the Spanish economy, which, according to her, is marked by «out-of-control debt.» Albert questioned why Sánchez has not updated the advance payments, suggesting that he could have done so through a Royal Decree-Law, as was done in 2019. She hinted that the central government may be using this situation to pressure the autonomous communities to forgive Catalonia’s debt. However, Albert made it clear that Madrid will not succumb to these pressures. «What he wants is to scare us and see if we are willing to forgive Catalonia’s debt. Well, he’s mistaken, Madrid will not give in,» she declared. Additionally, she emphasized that the Community of Madrid enjoys «financial health,» has the «trust of the markets,» and, most importantly, the «trust of the people of Madrid.»