The caretaker government has limited powers due to an unclear legislation. In view of this situation, the major concern focuses in the economic field where the fears can have an impact in investment, employment and Spanish GDP growth.
7 september 2016
It has been nearly a year since Spain does not have a government after two elections in which the results left a panorama where the political forces has not get to an agreement to form an stable executive government that rules the country during the next four years.
It is the first time that Spaniards experience such political phenomenon and the legislation on the management of lack of government is unclear and gives rise to many doubts. Thus, a caretaker government is the one which governs the State with the democratic incapacity to make important decisions, but all those limitations are not established in the legislation.
The current legislation limits certain powers of the executive caretaker government, but it does not determine the scope of its competencies in other situations
While the article 101 of the Constitution only indicates that the outgoing government “will continue being a caretaker government until the beginning of the new government”, the law 50/1997 of 27 November specifies some of the limits of the provisional government. Here are a few of them:Proposing the King the dissolution of the Chambers
- Proposing the King the call of a consultative referendum
- Presenting bills
- Passing new state budgets
Despite in this section some of the faculty of the caretaker government are specified, they are not in other factors on foreign policy or emergency actions.
Uncertainty in the economy
In view of this situation, one of the fields that get most attention is the economic one. Without new economic policies or actions that adapt to the situation of the country, the fears on a blocking of the Spanish economy grow.
One of the most feared consequences of not having a formed government for the next years is the threat of the falling of investment expectations. This fact can affect negatively the data of employment that would significantly reduce the growth progressively reached in the GDP during the last years.
Despite accumulating so many days without a government, nowadays the caretaker government operates under the passed budgets of the last year, so there is a little room for manoeuvre. Technically, there is no power vacuum that has the country paralysed, although third elections that not make possible forming the executive body can trigger the doubts and fears again.
