The Valencia Cortes session centered on a heated debate about the Municipal Cooperation Fund, ignited by an irregular proposal from PSPV-PSOE. The discussion did not unify opinions on the issue; instead, it highlighted widening gaps between the viewpoints of the People’s Party and the socialist faction. Each side claimed that the Constitutional Court had sided with their arguments. The Popular party argued that regional law differs from state law, pointing to Article 7 as the most significant and noting that the Court struck it down. PSPV countered by saying that the Constitutional Court approved the rest of the project, which had backing from the Ximo Puig government.
Cooperation Fund comes into the loop: Debate turns to Valencia Cortes
The Cortes session also served to bolster the PP on the matter. The council is developing a new Cooperation Fund, an initiative already agreed with three state assemblies and largely controlled by the Popular party. Socialists, meanwhile, redirected their criticism toward the administration led by the current Generalitat president, Carlos Mazón, focusing on his years steering the Provincial General Assembly.
Hundred million
Elche deputy Ramón Abad presented the non-legislative proposal advanced by PSPV in the Cortes. It called for the Provincial Council to cover the remaining roughly one hundred million euros needed for Alicante province municipalities to enter the fund. Seven years had passed since the state agency declined to participate in the Botanical Cooperation Fund. Abad asserted that an investment plan protected by Cortes law and approved by the Constitutional Court exists, with Valencia and Castellón swiftly joining and transferring a total of 160 million to their municipalities. He argued that Alicante’s municipalities faced discrimination because of Mazón’s leadership. In response, Abad criticized the Consell’s management, pointing to a delay of up to 21 months in aid for DANA and urging the Provincial Council to settle the debt and present a Cortes-approved solution for the articles canceled by constitutional measures. He also accused Vox of ideological bias in the Elche government and charged them with pushing for the elimination of bike lanes, sex education, and LGBTQ diversity programs while opposing negotiating institutes on the matter.
The Popular stance, as outlined by Eduardo Dolón, framed Mazón and his team as defenders of Alicante’s regional interests. Dolón stated that the Constitutional Court refuted Puig’s theses and suggested that the Consell had worked in coordination with the Court on a legal Cooperation Fund. He stressed that the Alicante provincial authority should not be forced to disburse funds to municipalities when the distribution framework is deemed unconstitutional, illegal, or void. Dolón labeled the investment plan a serious misstep and noted that the province had no problem participating in other funds created by broad consensus, such as those aimed at assisting the tourism sector during the pandemic.
Partners
Vox supported the regional government’s approach, while Compromís backed PSPV’s position. Valencian representatives introduced an amendment to the irregular proposal encouraging the Cortes to push the Provincial Council to implement the Consell Fund. “Municipalities deserve opportunities,” asserted Jesús Pla of Compromís, who argued that investment should be uncoupled from conditional constraints.
Vox deputy José María Llanos reminded attendees that his party had already submitted proposals to amend the entire law. He stated that he had left Botànic and would no longer support the socialist plan. Llanos argued that obligatory participation by delegations would strip local units of their powers and authority, emphasizing the need for municipalities to retain independence in decision-making.