The Vice President of the Government of Aragón, Mar Vaquero, has accused the central administration led by Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez of ‘putting a price on unaccompanied immigrant minors’ entering Spain.

Vaquero asserts that these minors are being used as 'bargaining chips' to gain political support within the Congress of Deputies.

In a recent press conference, Vaquero expressed her discontent with remarks made by Elma Saiz, the Minister of Inclusion, Social Security, and Migration, who claimed in a regional newspaper that the Aragón government approaches ‘cruelty’ in its policies regarding unaccompanied immigrant minors, locally referred to as 'menas'.

Vaquero dismissed these statements as 'unacceptable' and contended that it is the national government that is practicing a ‘cruel policy’ by prioritizing political interests over the welfare of these minors.

She emphasized that migration policy and border control ‘are constitutionally non-delegable’ responsibilities, reiterating that the Aragón government has acted 'with solidarity' to protect these children.

Vaquero publicly invited Minister Saiz to visit Aragón to witness the support systems in place for these minors, which she claims are necessary due to the central government’s lack of response and care.

Vaquero highlighted the challenges faced by local governments, citing that the Zaragoza city council has had to accommodate 40 individuals despite their recognition of international protection, further stressing that this situation stems from the Spanish government’s failure in migration policies.

In her statements, the Vice President also criticized the national government for allegedly deviating from constitutional principles by implementing distribution criteria for minors in a recent Royal Decree Law.

This distribution corresponds with decisions made with their independentist partners, according to her remarks.

The debate intensified as the Constitutional Court accepted the appeals submitted by Aragón, Cantabria, and Extremadura challenging the distribution of unaccompanied minors among different regions in Spain.

Vaquero has indicated that the Aragón government will provide any necessary data to the central government regarding unaccompanied minors under their care, contingent upon judicial requests.

She also called for Minister Saiz to respond to inquiries from the Supreme Court regarding the management of over a thousand unaccompanied minors received in the Canary Islands.

Furthermore, Vaquero criticized the recent 25% budget cut in the Corresponsables Plan, financed by the national government, asserting that it substantially affects the financial response capacity of the Aragón government.

She expressed concerns that such cuts jeopardize policies aimed at equality, child welfare, and work-life balance, emphasizing that this decision was made unilaterally and without consensus in the Sectorial Conference, further straining intergovernmental cooperation.