There was no doubt because, although he had not yet spoken out, the president of the Principality of Asturias, Adrián Barbón, had made sure that his rejection of the granting of a tax agreement to Catalonia, such as that contemplated in the pre-agreement for the investiture of Salvador Illa with ERC, was made clear with the interventions of his vice-president, Gimena Llanedo and his Minister of Finance, Guillermo Peláez. This Friday, having returned to the activity of the Government after a few days of rest, he was clear: "No to the exit of any autonomous community from the common regime."
Barbón, one of the only three socialist regional presidents who survived the 'tsunami' of the 2023 elections, is not Emiliano García-Page. Unlike what happens with the man from Castilla-La Mancha, his harmony with Pedro Sánchez has always been complete. But that has not prevented him, in this case, from distancing himself from what is not only a pact between the PSC and the Republican independentists, but a radical change in the model of regional financing to which all communities are subject, with the exception of the Basque Country and Navarre, which the PSOE executive promised to promote on Tuesday in an 'express' executive.
Like Page on Wednesday, the Asturian president has stressed that, despite wishing more than anyone else for Illa to be president of the Generalitat, what was agreed with ERC does not represent or bind him; something that has also been stated, in one way or another, by other general secretaries such as Luis Tudanca from Castile-León; Juan Lobato from Madrid; Javier Lambán from Aragon or Miguel Ángel Gallardo from Extremadura, who yesterday requested a meeting of the Federal Policy Council, in which all territorial leaders are represented, to address the matter.
Half a dozen territories share Gallardo's claim, but Ferraz is in no hurry to attend to it, at least until the investiture of the PSC leader is assured. Barbón has not placed special emphasis on this, but he has left a message. "I have no doubt that the executive will seek the channel of internal debate," he said. For him, in any case, the crux of the matter is in another body, in this case, institutional, the Council of Fiscal and Financial Policy, in which the Government and autonomous communities participate.
