The Parliament of the Canary Islands hosted this Saturday the signing of the institutional declaration of the 'Pact for the Social and Economic Reactivation of the Canary Islands', from which the parliamentary groups of PP and Cs have finally withdrawn.
The text, supported by the Socialist and Nationalist groups --with a critical yes--, Sí Podemos, Nueva Canarias, Fecam and Fecai, the majority unions, business associations and social agents, is structured around seven axes and commits the signatories to its defense in the different areas in which they participate.
In his speech, the President of the Canary Islands, Ángel Víctor Torres, has offered his hand to PP and Cs to join the pact at any time, highlighting that the document "belongs to everyone" and also includes some of their proposals.
Just as it happened during the Second World War, when populations were reduced and cities were destroyed, the president commented that Covid-19 threatens to "demolish" the welfare state, "without bombs", but with an "invisible enemy" that makes up the "greatest humanitarian emergency" of the 21st century.
He pointed out that "the most painful thing" is that "it takes the lives of loved ones" and "intimidates" society "with death, poverty and inequalities", so this pact, he added, serves to "leave no one behind".
In this context, he pointed out that the pact "is the best possible" because it implies not cutting economic resources in the administrations, strengthening public services, protecting the most vulnerable, recovering employment, speeding up investment with administrative simplification and promoting the sustainability objectives of the 2030 Agenda.
The Erte, a "fundamental" tool
Torres has stressed that the Canary Islands is the community "most affected" in the economic field because the pandemic "has hit tourism" and in the middle of the high season, and 40% of the islands' employment depends on that subsector --60% in the entire services sector--.
For this reason, he commented that "it has been fundamental" the approval of the Temporary Employment Regulation Files (ERTE), a "necessary commitment" to maintain the relationship between worker and company and avoid "unemployment and anguish".
If the ERTE had not been approved --and the Executive hopes that they will be extended until the end of the year, "today we would be talking about appalling unemployment figures", he warned.
Torres has valued that the pact also implies the "collaboration" of the central government so that the Canary Islands institutions can use all the resources at their disposal such as surpluses, surpluses or indebtedness and thus help to "recover" the productive sectors and services.
In the tourism field, he highlighted the 'Canary Islands Fortress' plan that defines "how to act" in the de-escalation of the subsector applying the "maximum health security" and giving a "boost" to digitization or culture as a subsector to "generate economy".
Regarding transport, the "compensations" to companies that have suffered losses during the state of alarm and the commitment to "monitor" the prices of tickets, an "untouchable right" for the Canarians, are defended.
Also, the so-called "unemployment of the self-employed" is complemented, SMEs are helped with expenses, the new REF is promoted, as well as the training and retraining plans for workers and also the Comprehensive Employment Plan.
In the same line, the pact commits to promote public and private works, based on administrative simplification, to start "pulling" construction and thus help the recovery of employment.
Torres has also said that the pandemic has allowed us to learn to "value" the effort of the groups in public services, advancing that there will be investments in educational centers to "return to the classrooms" with "security measures" that require public investments.
Objective: To protect the most vulnerable
In that line, he pointed out that they are "in debt" with the health and social health personnel, so there will be investments in the modernization of facilities and protocols and the social services law will be developed.
He has assumed that "difficult times" are being experienced in the Canary Islands, with a poverty that was "structural" before the health crisis and now, "more than ever", it is necessary to protect the "most vulnerable" with measures such as the Canary Islands Emergency Income --as a bridge with the state income--, the suppression of social rent, the streamlining of the PCI or the extension of the dining room fees. "Let the pandemic not drag down those who need us most," he said.
Torres recalled that the economic prospects "were encouraging" in the Canary Islands when everything "was cut short" on March 14, and since that day, more than 100 meetings have been held with different agents and groups that have shaped the 'reconstruction pact', whose "essence" has been to reach consensus.
In his opinion, the pact "is a step forward" to promote the economic and social reactivation of the archipelago, stressing that "agreeing is not a weakness, on the contrary, it is a strength, and now, a necessity".
In that line, he pointed out that "a new journey begins" in the Canary Islands that will culminate "successfully" if there is "unity".
"We are going to adapt to the new situation, we will not let Covid-19 knock down the foundations of the welfare state, we will know how to rebuild ourselves, this is the pact of the Canary Islands", he concluded.
