Diario La Rioja: Change in the Bank of Spain

The governor of the Bank of Spain, Pablo Hernández de Cos, ends a non-extendable six-year mandate on the 11th without the Government having decided on his replacement or yet entering into talks with the PP in search of a possible agreement. The minister of … Economía maintains that “there is no rush,” since the deputy governor, Margarita Delgado, can assume the reins of the entity until September, when she will cease her duties. An unwritten and not always applied law – it has been ignored by leaders of various stripes – establishes a distribution of the regulator’s leadership between the party in Moncloa and the one that leads the opposition, without prejudice to the appointment of professionals with such high responsibilities to such high responsibilities. a solid prestige and extensive experience. The noisy blowing up of bridges between the country’s two main formations in the midst of extreme polarization distances an understanding that would be desirable, among other reasons, to consolidate the independence of the institution and isolate it from political confrontation.

With the duo that has run it since 2018, the Bank of Spain, an essential piece in our economic fabric, has recovered the prestige it lost with its very reprehensible management of the 2008 financial crisis, after the burst of the real estate ‘bubble’, and gained influence both in national debate and in ECB decision-making. The new team that replaces him faces the challenge of maintaining or improving that reputation, which is not immune to a visible autonomy of judgment with respect to the Executive, based on the maximum technical rigor, although his appointment corresponds to the Council of Ministers. Hernández de Cos, appointed by the PP, has not avoided friction with the Government by insistently appealing to the gradual containment of the deficit and debt, which has led him to question social measures due to their impact on public spending and to be classified of ‘hawk’. His successor may have different sensitivities, but a certain supervisory role is associated with the exercise of a position that must ensure economic stability with a vision of the future and in which there is no room for partisan whims.

The candidates who have come to the fore generally meet the demanding profile of knowledge and experience required by the position. The final decision corresponds to Pedro Sánchez, who would do well to prioritize excellence over strict ideological affinity in such a relevant election.