Government Releases €400 Million for the Canary Islands

Fernando Clavijo and María Jesús Montero sealed the agreement in Madrid

The president of the Canary Islands, Fernando Clavijo, and the Minister of Finance, María Jesús Montero, signed an agreement on Tuesday to mobilise roughly €400 million for the reconstruction of La Palma, assistance to unaccompanied migrant minors, the integral water cycle, support for the primary sector, as well as resources for an employment plan and anti‑poverty funds. Both parties say the disbursement must occur before the end of 2025. The announcement follows months of “blocked” line items, according to Clavijo himself, and the absence of a definitive payment schedule from the central government.

A Promise with Conditions

Clavijo acknowledged that the Treasury still needs to define the legal route to launch the measures: an urgent decree or a single‑reading bill, the latter requiring parliamentary backing from the PSOE and the Canarian Coalition. Both cabinets pledged to set a mechanism “to ensure they come into force before the end of 2025.”

That “before the end of 2025” clause highlights the agreement’s main weakness: it lacks intermediate milestones, leaves most of the implementation to political procedures, and depends on the state’s execution capacity. While Clavijo spoke of a “push,” Montero admitted that funds are currently blocked but did not provide a detailed transfer timetable. Consequently, the announcement is a large‑scale financial promise that rests on a procedural framework still undecided.

The reference to a 60 % income‑tax reduction in La Palma and the €100 million allocated for this fiscal year—plus another €100 million from the previous year—underscores delays the central executive must resolve swiftly if it intends to meet its own deadlines. The island faces urgent reconstruction and economic revitalisation needs that cannot tolerate further postponements. Each week without an approved regulation and payment order translates into families, self‑employed workers, and SMEs.

The arrival of unaccompanied minors has strained reception, education, and protection services across the Canary Islands. The €50 million announced for 2025 is a first step, but it does not fully cover a phenomenon that requires stable financing and shared state responsibility. Moreover, the figure arrives late, after the autonomous community has spent months demanding a budgetary response proportionate to the archipelago’s reality.

Water and Agriculture

• €20 million earmarked for hydraulic works.
• €21 million allocated to the primary sector.

These amounts are modest compared with the structural deficits the Canary Islands have endured for years. Their impact will depend on timely tendering, smooth transfers without bottlenecks, and effective inter‑administrative coordination. The agreement recognises the needs but does not clarify how quickly the projects will be executed.

Clavijo described the meeting as “positive”—as usual—and thanked Montero for the political drive behind the “funds that were there, blocked.” Yet, without clear dates or a chosen legislative instrument, the central executive shifts responsibility to technical execution and to parliamentary arbitration.