SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, 12th March (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Canary Islands President, Fernando Clavijo, affirmed on Tuesday that his administration is dedicated to cutting down bureaucracy across different sectors, but without adopting the “free-for-all” stance of Vox.
Responding to spokesperson Nicasio Galván during the first day of the ‘Nationality State Debate’, he reiterated his firm stance in the fight against sexist violence and commitment to equality policies, while also acknowledging and respecting the conservative party’s viewpoints as they are “democrats.”
Clavijo highlighted that Vox has not been actively involved in major parliamentary agreements during this term. Despite some alignment on tackling immigration mafias, he stressed that erecting walls is not a viable solution.
“It’s natural for people to want to thrive,” he stated, urging Vox to reconsider their stance considering the urgent situation where people “need food and shelter.” “We really need to assist them,” he emphasised.
He stood up for enhancing public employees’ salaries – an additional 300 million Euros this year – and ensuring stability in their job conditions, as well as amending the AIEM to safeguard local products and advocating for the protection of the Canary Islands’ agricultural specificities.
He called on Vox to support reaching resolutions at the forthcoming summit in April with the European Agriculture Commissioner.
Clavijo also pushed for boosting productivity to enhance wealth distribution, aiming for an increase in the average wage on the islands surpassing inflation increments.
Expressing surprise at Vox’s denial of climate change, he voiced support for the ‘Agenda 2030’ to steer economic and social progress, while opposing the introduction of nuclear energy in the Canary Islands. “It’s regressive; we can’t turn back time,” he remarked.
He emphasised his opposition to nuclear energy, mentioning that such discussions are obsolete in Spain and that implementing it in the Canary Islands would necessitate a plant on each island due to their isolated systems.
Furthermore, he expressed disappointment that Vox is unwilling to support exempting the Canary Islands from the spending rule, debt relief, and adherence of the General State Budget to the Canary Islands agenda. He noted that going into debt for infrastructure development, rather than to cover running costs, is more logical.
Recognising the high prices of electric cars, he justified the subsidies while underscoring their contribution to reducing CO2 emissions. Additionally, efforts are being made to delve into green hydrogen and initiatives for a kind of ‘renovation plan’.
