The Balearic government, led by the Popular Party (PP) under President Marga Prohens, has finalized an agreement with the far-right party Vox to approve the regional budget for 2025. This agreement, reached after several weeks of negotiations, includes reductions in the requirements for knowledge of the Catalan language, an escalation of immigration policies, and the repeal of the regional Democratic Memory Law.

President Prohens becomes the second leader in the PP to secure a budgetary agreement with Vox, following the precedent set by Carlos Mazón in the Community of Valencia.

Following this Valencian accord, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, the leader of the PP, encouraged other regional leaders to pursue similar alliances with Vox.

Key modifications in the agreement center on language and immigration policies.

The proposed changes will amend the Balearic Education Law to recognize Spanish as a vehicular language in education.

Currently, the law designates Catalan as the primary language for social cohesion in educational activities and mandates that a minimum of 50% of classes be taught in Catalan, allowing educational institutions autonomy regarding the remaining language.

PP spokesman Sebastià Sagreras highlighted that the inclusion of Spanish as a vehicular language was originally passed by the PSOE, with support from the PP and Més per Mallorca, during discussions on the Education Law but was later removed under pressure from language advocacy groups.

The agreement also stipulates exemptions from Catalan language proficiency for teachers in hard-to-fill positions, permitting them to demonstrate linguistic knowledge after securing employment.

Sagreras rationalized the decision by stating a preference for the presence of teachers who may initially only speak Spanish over a lack of educators in certain subjects.

Furthermore, the reduction of Catalan language requirements will extend to other public administration roles, ensuring language proficiency does not hinder access to job vacancies evaluated through public service criteria.

Changes in immigration policy, as outlined in the agreement, include a refusal to accept unaccompanied foreign minors and a withdrawal of funding for construction of reception centers.

Additionally, eligibility for the Social Income, a provision aimed at individuals in situations of exclusion, will now require proof of three years of legal residence in the Balearic Islands.

The agreement also includes withdrawal of financial support for certain organizations and a review of cooperation projects.

A five-year residency requirement for accessing housing assistance is also established, with agreed-upon sanctions for property occupation without consent, although specifics regarding penalties or criminal classifications remain ambiguous.

The agreement concludes with a commitment to repeal the Balearic Democratic Memory Law, which the PP argues is unnecessary given existing national legislation on memory and a regional law regarding mass graves.

Marga Prohens has attributed the details of the agreement to Sagreras while describing the negotiations as complex and conducted with mutual respect.

She dismissed inquiries regarding any potential influence from Vox's national leadership, asserting that the agreement was made independently.

Vox representatives emphasized that the budget was achieved through a firm negotiation that compelled the PP to adopt measures that would not have been initiated independently, highlighting claims that the PP needed Vox's support to pass the current budget, which is set at approximately €6.562 billion.

The budget agreement comes shortly after Núñez Feijóo announced his candidacy for the PP's national leadership ahead of the party's upcoming congress in July, where he confirmed that discussions regarding the party's relationship with Vox would not be clarified in the resulting political document.

The move towards collaboration between the PP and Vox raises questions, particularly as several regions, including Castilla y León, Region of Murcia, Extremadura, and Aragón, have yet to finalize their budgets due to similar deadlocks.