The covid-19 pandemic and its consequences on the economy do not seem to be any impediment for the Spanish government to continue investing in infrastructures of the magnitude of the high-speed railway line (AVE). Today, Spanish prime minister Pedro Sánchez made a promise: there will be an AVE in Extremadura and it will arrive in "one year".
He said this during a speech after visiting a home for the elderly in Navalmoral de la Mata (Cáceres). Amidst applause and boos —the latter from a group of people from the ‘No to the Wall Platform’, who are calling for the AVE to go underground as it passes through town—, Sánchez referred to one of the most important demands from the people of Extremadura and said that he hopes it will materialise by this time in 2022.
Spanish prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, is received by the president of Extremadura, Guillermo Fernández Vara / EFE
However, the speech was brief —just a few minutes— and, instead of giving more details about the project, he preferred to thank the hospitality of the citizens of Navalmoral de la Mata; its mayor, Raquel Medina; and the president of Extremadura, Guillermo Fernández Vara.
Unconditional support from Extremadura
Previously, Vara stressed the commitment of the central government with the region because since he arrived, he said, "it has been working hard to fulfil a pending debt", the railway for Extremadura.
"You can also count on us for everything we can do for the benefit of this common house called Spain. Whatever is in our hands, you will have it", he concluded, addressing the prime minister.
The President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, and the President of Extremadura, Guillermo Fernández Vara, among other authorities / EFE
He applauds the good rate of vaccination
During his statement, Sánchez thanked Extremadura for its collaboration in achieving the good rate of vaccination, which has allowed 70% of the inhabitants of Extremadura to be fully vaccinated.
He highlighted the commitment of these citizens to protect themselves and the rest of society, and insisted that vaccination "means economic recovery", as the figures show.
In the worst moments of the pandemic, he said, there were 30,000 workers protected by an ERTE in Extremadura, and today there are fewer than 3,000.
"Solidarity and empathy" for those affected by the collapse
On the other hand, he also wanted to dedicate part of his speech to those affected by the collapse of the building in Peñíscola. Sánchez expressed "all solidarity and empathy" for the minor found dead in the rubble.
He praised the work of the emergency services and police forces in clearing the rubble, as well as their efforts to try to locate the body, "hopefully alive", of the child's mother.