Spanish hard-left candidate promises €20,000 for people who turn 18
Spain’s Labour Minister and candidate in the national elections Yolanda Díaz has vowed to give young people a €20,000 handout which they can use to invest in property, to set up a business or to study.
Díaz, whose newly formed coalition Sumar encompasses 15 left-wing parties, has vowed to give Spaniards who turn 18 a €20,000 cheque, her standout promise ahead of the July 23rd general election in which she is running.
The current Labour Minister and Second Deputy Prime Minister has referred to it as “universal inheritance”, a measure which aims to correct inequality among the roughly 8.2 million under-18s living in Spain (2022 CEU figures).
The €20,000 ‘startup money’ would be “to study and to kickstart life goals”, Díaz said, with higher education, entrepreneurship and property mentioned as the three options the money could be invested in by young Spanish adults.
According to Sumar, a tax on wealth and inheritance of under 10 percent which excludes first homes and assets of up to €1 million would be sufficient to fund the scheme.
The cost could amount to 0.8 percent of Spain’s GDP, around €8 billion.
"Income and wealth inequality are comparatively very high in our country, therefore the work that Spain’s Welfare State has to do with its redistributive policies would be easier if we already reduced the gap at the source," reads the 35-page document presented by Sumar.
Sumar’s proposed ‘startup money’ for young people was first suggested by French economist Thomas Piketty, who in 2019 called for all French citizens to receive €120,000 for their 25th birthday, a sum that’s considerably higher than that proposed by Díaz.
"It’s very hard to be young in Spain,” Díaz said to a crowd of followers in Toledo on Sunday.
“Even more so when we have had 'nini' governments, because they have given neither solutions nor alternatives to youth."
The term ‘nini’ was coined in the early 2010s and is derived from ni estudia, ni trabaja (neither works nor studies), in reference to the high volume of young people in Spain with little to no career prospects.
READ ALSO: Youth unemployment in Spain reach all-time low
Although the minister who until recently represented Spain's far-left Unidas Podemos used the term ‘nini’ to criticise the Socialist-led government, Sumar is likely to have to form a coalition with the PSOE if it intends to form a government, and currently polls are showing that a right-wing coalition between the PP and Vox is more likely.
Díaz argued that this measure is as necessary as raising Spain's minimum wage (SMI), which is one of her other proposals along with reducing the Spanish work week to 32 hours a week.
“Entrepreneurship should not be linked to parental means," Díaz concluded.
“The proposal is modest as there are economic activities that can’t be established with €20,000, but they could favour cooperative and collective projects.”
READ ALSO: Tensions persist despite deal uniting Spain's hard left
Comments
See Also
Díaz, whose newly formed coalition Sumar encompasses 15 left-wing parties, has vowed to give Spaniards who turn 18 a €20,000 cheque, her standout promise ahead of the July 23rd general election in which she is running.
The current Labour Minister and Second Deputy Prime Minister has referred to it as “universal inheritance”, a measure which aims to correct inequality among the roughly 8.2 million under-18s living in Spain (2022 CEU figures).
The €20,000 ‘startup money’ would be “to study and to kickstart life goals”, Díaz said, with higher education, entrepreneurship and property mentioned as the three options the money could be invested in by young Spanish adults.
According to Sumar, a tax on wealth and inheritance of under 10 percent which excludes first homes and assets of up to €1 million would be sufficient to fund the scheme.
The cost could amount to 0.8 percent of Spain’s GDP, around €8 billion.
"Income and wealth inequality are comparatively very high in our country, therefore the work that Spain’s Welfare State has to do with its redistributive policies would be easier if we already reduced the gap at the source," reads the 35-page document presented by Sumar.
Sumar’s proposed ‘startup money’ for young people was first suggested by French economist Thomas Piketty, who in 2019 called for all French citizens to receive €120,000 for their 25th birthday, a sum that’s considerably higher than that proposed by Díaz.
"It’s very hard to be young in Spain,” Díaz said to a crowd of followers in Toledo on Sunday.
“Even more so when we have had 'nini' governments, because they have given neither solutions nor alternatives to youth."
The term ‘nini’ was coined in the early 2010s and is derived from ni estudia, ni trabaja (neither works nor studies), in reference to the high volume of young people in Spain with little to no career prospects.
READ ALSO: Youth unemployment in Spain reach all-time low
Although the minister who until recently represented Spain's far-left Unidas Podemos used the term ‘nini’ to criticise the Socialist-led government, Sumar is likely to have to form a coalition with the PSOE if it intends to form a government, and currently polls are showing that a right-wing coalition between the PP and Vox is more likely.
Díaz argued that this measure is as necessary as raising Spain's minimum wage (SMI), which is one of her other proposals along with reducing the Spanish work week to 32 hours a week.
“Entrepreneurship should not be linked to parental means," Díaz concluded.
“The proposal is modest as there are economic activities that can’t be established with €20,000, but they could favour cooperative and collective projects.”
READ ALSO: Tensions persist despite deal uniting Spain's hard left
Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.
Please log in here to leave a comment.