SPAIN THIS WEEK

Monday, 10 July 2017 08/07/2017 Mariano Rajoy assesses the release from prison of Leopoldo López as a step in the right direction The President of the Government, Mariano Rajoy, thanked the German Presidency of the G-20 for the acknowledgement it made of Spain's extensive experience in the matter of immigration and highlighted the recognition and support for victims of terrorism contained in the Hamburg Declaration upon a Spanish initiative. 06/07/2017 President of the Government receives General Secretary of PSOE The President of the Government, Mariano Rajoy, met at Moncloa Palace with the General Secretary of the Partido Socialista Obrero Español (PSOE) [Spanish Socialist Workers' Party], Pedro Sánchez. The two party leaders agreed that the pro-independence referendum in Catalonia is illegal and will not be held, and agreed to conclude the State Pact against gender-based violence as soon as possible. 05/07/2017 Mariano Rajoy announces measures to increase size of Spanish companies At the official opening of the conference on "Business Growth and Competitiveness", the President of the Government, Mariano Rajoy, stated that "we must increase the size of our companies and make sure they become more competitive". With that in mind, the Minister for Economic Affairs, Industry and Competitiveness will present a report at the end of the month. 07/07/2017 Government completes 2017 Public Employment Offer with 20,280 new vacancies The Council of Ministers approved an ordinary offer of 15,998 vacancies and an extraordinary offer of 4,282 vacancies. In addition to the 7,969 jobs offered in March, the Public Employment Offer for this year amounts to 28,249 posts in total, the highest figure since 2008. Furthermore, the government has increased by one tenth the deficit target of the regional governments for 2018 and 2019 and has reduced the social security target by the same amount. 03/07/2017 Government raises growth forecast and approves ceiling on State spending The government has raised the growth forecast of the economy for this year and next, to 3% and 2.6% respectively. This has been included in the new macro-economic chart that provides support to the State's non-financial limit on spending for 2018, which has been raised by 1.5 billion euros. The Council of Ministers also regulated the Vocational Training System for Employment at a labour level. 06/07/2017 "Spain is maintaining its commitment to continue with relocations from Greece and Italy as an expression of its solidarity and in compliance with accepted obligations", says Juan Ignacio Zoido 05/07/2017 AESA recommends passengers travelling to United States to consult boarding times with their airline 05/07/2017 National Police arrest a man in Melilla of Algerian nationality who was wanted for belonging to a terrorist group 05/07/2017 Ministries of Tourism and Environmental Affairs sign agreement to foster eco-tourism 04/07/2017 Guardia Civil arrest individual in Collado Mediano (Madrid) for his involvement in radicalisation activities and the distribution of Jihadist propaganda supporting DAESH 04/07/2017 Number of contributors to Spanish social security system rises by 87,692 in June 04/07/2017 Recorded unemployment falls by 98,317 in June 03/07/2017 Returning DAESH fighter arrested in Malaga by Guardia Civil on Friday attempted to buy weapons and bullet-proof vests in Spain 03/07/2017 Home Affairs Ministers of G-4 agree on Seville Declaration to strengthen cooperation mechanisms