El Concierto Económico: concepción, negociación y críticas

Abstract

After the hazardous life of the Economic Agreement, since its birth in 1878, in 1980 the author of this article (who was at that time the Minister for Economy and Finance of the Government of the Basque Country) had the honor to serve as President of the Basque negotiating Commission that was able to reach a new Agreement with the Spanish negotiating Commission, with a new methodology, based on the definition included in the Statute of Autonomy of the Basque Country. It was a long, hard and complex negotiation in which twenty difficult obstacles had to be overcome. Upon its completion, a decisive pact between the Basque Country and Spain was enacted: the Economic Agreement of 1981. Now, unfortunately, this positive and relevant pact is under attack and criticism as a consequence of lack of knowledge and stereotypes, if not slanders. It is necessary to face all of them, in order to safeguard the Economic Agreement, because it is crucial for the present and the future of the Basque Country.