In the broader policy clash, Ximo Puig stands at a pivotal moment as tax reform becomes a decisive talking point. The general debate has put him between growing distrust from Pedro Sánchez’s government and mounting pressure from Botànic allies, Compromís and Unides Podem, who insist that the wealthy should shoulder more of the burden. The public is keenly watching for signs of weakness in the presidency, and this week observers have pressed to question the tax cut during a public exchange. The regional leadership, alongside Carlos Mazón and María José Catalá, among others, criticized the proposal for what they described as a cautious, unclear approach that moved forward while the tourist tax was still being processed.
Mazón took the lead in directing the criticism at Puig. The PPCV leader stressed that the Generalitat head appeared to punish communities that lowered taxes the previous week and noted that the cut would return only 150 million of the 1,500 million already collected by the Generalitat. The Alicante figure, unable to respond in the Valencian Parliament due to not holding a deputy seat there, also argued that debate over tax reform had been ongoing for months, a stance he has frequently used, suggesting that the reforms would not jeopardize community services or the welfare state.
From Mazón’s vantage, Puig’s speech lacked clear certainty. He lamented that the president did not specify the exact rate, when it would be implemented in 2022 or 2023, or what implications such decisions would carry. The Alicante native celebrated the controversy around the tax cut as a moment that has now reached PSPV circles. He added that the daily inconsistencies do not seem like the best way to handle the situation.
In media interactions Mazón was asked whether he would bend Puig’s lines toward his own national policy stance. He stated that he could not decide which persona to show, since the president sometimes appears to back tax cuts and other times appears to reverse course. Mazón also pointed out that a large number of the nearly eighty announcements made by the Consel in his speech had not materialized.
Mazón then framed a bold claim: another 1.5 billion had been collected, yet Puig offered to give back only 150 million. The general secretary of the Popular Party and a Cortes trustee, María José Catalá, aligned with Mazón by criticizing Puig and Català for not finalizing the reform plan while pressing the need for a concrete tax reduction strategy within the Valencia Community. Catalá questioned whether the PSPV had secured authorization from Madrid or from Valencia partners to pursue the financial proposal, highlighting the broader political friction at play.
Catalá articulated that the reform as presented by Puig was insufficient and far from the PPCV alternative. She reinforced Mazón’s point about the savings, contrasting the proposed 1.5 billion in potential reductions with the 150 million figure in Puig’s plan. She cast doubt on the compatibility of a housing discount for young people with existing measures and called the discounts promised for families into question, describing them as improvable. The impact on the cost of living, such as a reduction in the shopping cart by a small amount, was pointed to as a practical yardstick of the reform’s value.
The PPCV also outlined options for the Consel to pursue legal avenues if the regional funding model change does not translate into real improvements for the Community. Their stance on the tourist tax was articulated in the context of a broad critique of how the government partners have approached the budgetary challenges since last July in Parliament.