SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE/MADRID Jan. 7 (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Canary Islands are leading the way in heightened investment in minimum income, experiencing a remarkable increase of 103% since the implementation of the Minimum Living Income in 2020, as reported by the Association of Directors and Managers of Social Services on Tuesday.
Nonetheless, only 6.6% of the population living below the poverty threshold in the islands receives minimum income support.
Additionally, 13 autonomous communities have decreased their expenditure on minimum incomes, with reductions exceeding 90% in the regions of Madrid and Aragón.
Similarly, data derived from the Minimum Insertion Income Report (RMI) for the year 2023, compiled by the Ministry of Social Rights, Consumption, and Agenda 2030, illustrates a 15.9% average decline in minimum insertion income across Spain since the launch of the IMV.
Aragón and Madrid lead in their cuts to these minimum incomes, with reductions of 96.2% and 91.1% respectively, followed by Castilla-La Mancha (-82.2%), Castilla y León (-69.7%), Andalusia (-65.4%), and La Rioja (-64.5%).
In contrast, the Canary Islands have ramped up their budget by 103%, along with the Balearic Islands (an increase of 74.7%), the Valencian Community (18.6%), and the Basque Country (4%).
The Association of Directors and Managers of Social Services further highlights that the budgetary cuts in RMI among most regions imply that “the upward trend established since 2011 will be interrupted,” resulting in a total loss of €320 million.
Moreover, they condemn that “numerous communities redirected their ‘savings’ from the RMI budget toward non-social service issues.”
Nonetheless, they commend the “commitment” shown in Castilla y León and Madrid to allocate these “savings” for bolstering other social services.
Furthermore, the association cautions that merely 5.9% of individuals below the poverty line in Spain have availed themselves of the RMI provided by autonomous communities. “This figure has been diminishing since 2015, aside from the pandemic year (2020), when it peaked at 8.7%,” they note.
In any event, they elaborate that disparities are evident across autonomous communities.
BASQUE COUNTRY: MORE THAN HALF OF THE POPULATION, COVERED
In this context, the Basque Country (51.2%) and Navarra (38.2%) stand out with figures that either exceed or are near 50% of their population living below the poverty line.
However, it is noted that in five communities, their RMI does not even reach 2% of those below the poverty line. Specifically, Castilla y León (1.7%), Murcia (1.2%), Madrid (0.8%), Andalusia (0.7%), and Castilla La Mancha (0.3%), while in Aragón, the average amount does not achieve 1% of the community’s average income.
Concerning the average sum per individual receiving RMI throughout Spain, the Association of Directors and Managers of Social Services states that it accounts for 15.9% of the average household income. They express regret that this is “extremely low”, although it has risen by two points over the past year.
The highest amounts regarding the average household income in their respective territories are found in the Balearic Islands (36.4%), Catalonia (18.3%), the Canary Islands (17.9%), Asturias (16.5%), and the Valencian Community (15.2%). The lowest figures are seen in Murcia (9%), Madrid (9.1%), and, in the most extreme case, Aragón, where the amount of their RMI represents a mere 0.7% of the average household income in the region.
