The Government launches the creation of the Productivity Council in Spain

The Ministry of Economy, Commerce and Business and the Ministry of Labor and Social Economy have published in a public hearing the draft Royal Decree for the constitution of the Productivity Council of Spain, with the aim of collecting contributions from economic operators.

The creation of the Council will respond to the recommendation of the Council of the European Union so that the Member States have a body that is specifically in charge of analyze the evolution and policies in the field of productivity and competitivenesswith the objective is promote the application of reforms that influence its improvement and, additionally, greater economic growth.

The Productivity Council will have among its functions the preparation of economic and statistical analyzes and the issuance of public opinions aimed at the evaluation and diagnosis of the productivity and competitiveness of the Spanish economy and its distribution, as well as public policies with an impact in these areas. Thus, the reports, opinions and work of the Productivity Council will make available to public powers a wide catalog of analyzes and measures that will allow the different levels of the Administration to adopt policies that favor productivity and competitiveness.

The Council will have functional autonomy and the appointment of its members will be based on experience and competence criteria.. It will be composed of a president, a vice president and fifteen members, its composition will be equal and the term of office of all its members will be five years, with no possibility of extension. In this way, the presidency will be appointed by the Minister of Economy, Commerce and Business and the vice-presidency by the head of the Ministry of Labor and Social Economy, and both must be people of recognized competence in economic matters.

In addition, members appointed by the heads of the Ministries of Science, Innovation and Universities will form part of the Council; of Digital Transformation and Public Service; of the Treasury, as well as the Bank of Spain and the Economic and Social Council. The people who occupy the presidency and vice-presidency will appoint, with the approval of the Council, five independent members who must be economists of recognized academic prestige.

Two people will also participate in the council with voice, but without vote, at the proposal of the most representative union organizations at the state level. and two people proposed by the most representative business organizations at the state level, in addition to the secretary. The Council will also be autonomous in the preparation of its work plan and in the detection of relevant areas of study, as well as in the preparation of analyzes and reports.