By Jess Aguado and Emma Pinedo
MADRID (Reuters) – Bank of Spain governor Pablo Hernandez de Cos on Tuesday called for broad political and social consensus to cope with the economic fallout from the COVID-19 disease amid a growing political spat over how to tackle the crisis.
Over the past days, the national and regional governments have traded barbs over what to do and who was to blame for an increase in cases in Madrid and its periphery, taking the political polarisation that has characterised much of the response to the pandemic over the past months to new heights.
“We must be aware of the magnitude of the challenge we face… and therefore I urge that we reach broad political and social agreements to tackle the urgent, ambitious and comprehensive growth strategy that our country needs,” De Cos told parliament.
Spain, one of the nations worst-affected by the COVID-19 with more than 32,000 deaths and more than 800,000 cases, is heading for its worst economic performance on record in 2020, with an expected contraction of between 10.5% to 12.6%, according to the Bank of Spain.
(Reporting by Jess Aguado and Emma Pinedo; editing by Ingrid Melander and Inti Landauro)
