Pedro Sánchez announces the Social Plan for the Climate, with more than 9,000 million euros in support measures for vulnerable households and mobility in the face of the energy[...]

The president presented the plan, co-financed by the EU's Social Climate Fund, to accompany citizens in the extension of the European emissions market to transport and residential buildings.

The President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, has presented the proposal of the Social Plan for Climate, allocated more than 9,000 million euros, co-financed by the EU's Social Climate Fund and 25% by the Executive and aimed at promoting "greater efficiency, equity and social justice", accompanying citizens in the face of the extension of the European emissions market to transport and residential buildings. The plan will mobilise 4.7 billion euros to help especially the most vulnerable households join the energy transition and another 4.3 billion euros to modernise and decarbonise mobility.

This was announced during the closing ceremony of the presentation of the plan, which was also attended by the Third Vice-President and Minister for Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge, Sara Aagesen, the Minister for Transport and Sustainable Mobility, Óscar Puente, and the Minister for Housing and Urban Agenda, Isabel Rodríguez.

Pedro Sánchez stressed the "urgency" of continuing to act in the face of the climate emergency with a "fair" ecological transition, considering that "the energy revolution cannot favour only those who can afford to change their cars, install solar panels on their roofs or renovate their homes without public aid", but that "it has to reach everyone". For this reason, he explained that the Social Plan for the Climate, allocated more than 9,000 million euros co-financed by the EU's Social Climate Fund, was created to accompany citizens in the face of the extension of the European emissions market to transport and residential buildings.

The Minister for Housing and Urban Agenda, the Third Vice-President and Minister for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge, the President of the Government of Spain and the Minister for Transport and Sustainable Mobility, at the presentation | Pool Moncloa / Borja Puig de la Bellacasa

"Spain and Europe have made great progress in decarbonisation", but he stressed the need to "be aware that this drive for decarbonisation is losing momentum as a result of the advance of denailist discourse, in my opinion, terra-planning, which is not compatible with science and which can obviously do great harm to the groups that most need the support of the public". In this way, he made it clear that the spirit of the plan is "that there should not be a choice between making ends meet or making it to the end of the century, that sustainability should not be a luxury and that the transition should also be a lever for cohesion, a catalyst for promoting greater equity, greater efficiency and, undoubtedly, greater social justice".

Housing: refurbishment, efficiency, energy communities and self-consumption

In this sense, he explained that the Social Plan for the Climate includes two major transformations that "directly affect the daily lives of millions of citizens: housing and transport".

In terms of housing, 4.7 billion euros will be mobilised to help the most vulnerable households in particular to join the energy transition, through initiatives to rehabilitate homes and entire neighbourhoods "so that they consume less energy, reduce emissions and, above all, reduce bills and improve quality of life"; as well as "promoting new social housing with the highest energy standards" that is synonymous with "energy quality, social welfare, affordability, equity and efficiency". Support will also be given to energy communities and collective self-consumption to "democratise energy".

Transport: rural mobility, Single Social Bond and vehicle renewal for SMEs and the self-employed

The President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, closes the presentation of the Social Plan for Climate | Pool Moncloa / Borja Puig de la Bellacasa

The second major pillar of the Social Climate Plan is transport, to which 4.3 billion euros will be allocated to modernise and decarbonise mobility. This point, he pointed out, includes the reinforcement of rural mobility, the implementation of a Single Social Bond, which "will make urban, metropolitan and interurban public transport practically free for millions of citizens", and aid for the self-employed, micro-companies and SMEs to renew their vehicles and adapt to cleaner and cheaper mobility. In addition to this, the electrification of commercial and heavy transport will be accelerated, thereby accompanying "those who work every day on wheels and cannot afford the cost of this transformation on their own", he said.

The president of the Government of Spain expressed his "pride" in the fact that almost 26% of the Spanish economy is electrified, making Spain more "resilient" to energy shocks, as it is less dependent on gas and oil. Since 2018, electricity generated with renewables has increased from 39% to 56%, greenhouse gas emissions have reduced 19%, which has demonstrated that "the green transition is the answer to the challenge of intergenerational solidarity and income from the economic point of view", said Pedro Sánchez. "We have shown that it is indeed possible to reduce greenhouse emissions while creating jobs and growth. It is not about generating opportunities, but also about creating employment, reducing inequalities and reindustrialising", he emphasised, referring to provinces such as Huelva, Badajoz and Cáceres.

"The ecological transition does not destroy, it builds the future and makes us freer and more independent. Recent energy crises have been a stark reminder of this. Dependence on fossil fuels not only pollutes, it also makes us vulnerable, it makes us vassals of other people's interests", he pointed out, which is why he considers that "defending the ecological transition today is not only a question of social and environmental justice, but also of strategic self-determination, of being more sovereign".

"We need everyone's support"

The President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, closes the presentation of the Social Plan for Climate. | Pool Moncloa / Borja Puig de la Bellacasa

The head of the executive explained that Spain has chosen "to make the ecological transition a collective project, an enormous opportunity, a European and national project. Shared progress", so that "the polluter pays, but the bill for the transition must be shared fairly". "This is precisely the principle that inspires the European emissions trading system", an instrument that, in his opinion, has proven to be "an effective and equitable instrument that has been promoted by the EU to reduce emissions and accelerate decarbonisation and that has incorporated many business groups that have been able to face decarbonisation and gain competitiveness".

"We will make the ecological transition more than a necessity: we will make it a shared opportunity. We are going to use it as a lever to continue building a fairer, more cohesive and more competitive country", he said, for which he stressed that "we need everyone's support", since the resources of the Social Climate Fund are conditional on the transposition and compliance with European regulations. "We hope it will have the support of the vast majority of parliamentary groups, because protecting the planet and protecting families are not incompatible objectives, they are the same task, and because Spain will not choose between economy and sustainability. The data supports us, today we are growing more, and we are less vulnerable to energy shocks because we have spent eight years with a consistent commitment from the point of view of energy, industry, transport, housing and sustainability," he concluded.

Aagesen: "We will submit the proposal to Brussels before the end of the year"

The third Vice-President and minister for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge, Sara Aagesen, speaks at the presentation of the Social Plan for Climate | Pool Moncloa / Borja Puig de la Bellacasa

The Third Vice-President of the Government of Spain and Minister for Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge, Sara Aagesen, said that, thanks to the "unprecedented public investment" of the Executive, which has maintained "the course of the Green Agenda", today "Spain is better positioned than many European partners" to face the new energy crisis arising from the conflict in the Middle East and today "one more step" is being taken in the fight against climate change with the launch of the proposed Social Plan for the Climate, constituted with "much dialogue" with civil society, autonomous communities and sectors. In this sense, she detailed that the proposal is available for public consultation until the end of June to receive contributions, after which a new round of workshops will be held with the aim of submitting the proposal to Brussels before the end of the year with the "collective intelligence of the country".

"It is a plan in which the energy transition continues to be a driving force for justice and equity and a commitment to the ecological transition, which is a policy of protection, modernisation, competitiveness and progress", she emphasised.

Puente: "It is a first opportunity to establish mobility as an element of social and territorial cohesion"

For his part, the Minister for Transport and Sustainable Mobility, Óscar Puente, praised the plan's proposal as a "first opportunity" to advance in the challenge of making "mobility an element of social and territorial cohesion" and "socially much fairer", bearing in mind that 56% of citizens in Europe feel isolated. In his view, mobility is a "fundamental right" as it allows access to public services or housing.

Rodriguez: "It's a great opportunity to address the challenge of access to housing"

The Minister for Transport and Sustainable Mobility, Óscar Puente, together with the Minister for Housing and Urban Agenda, Isabel Rodríguez, speaks at the presentation of the Social Plan for Climate | Pool Moncloa / Borja Puig de la Bellacasa

The Minister for Housing and Urban Agenda, Isabel Rodríguez, pointed out that the Social Plan for the Climate is also a "great opportunity" to tackle the challenge of access to housing at an affordable price and in quality conditions, in addition to other instruments such as Casa 47 or the PERTE (Strategic Project for the Recovery and Economic Transformation) on Housing to save emissions and build more efficiently, as well as the State Housing Plan which ahs been allocated 7,000 million euros.

She also highlighted the "successful model" achieved with the European 'NextGenerationEU' funds of the Recovery Plan, with the rehabilitation of neighbourhoods and hundreds of thousands of homes throughout the country to expand the public housing stock in conditions of affordability and energy efficiency, in collaboration with administrations, the sector and civil society. "It is essential that the public authorities support the people who need it most and the most vulnerable neighbourhoods," she added.

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