Sánchez offers 75% hiring subsidy for Ceuta and Melilla

Ceuta and Melilla: 75% employment subsidy, doubts included

The Council of Ministers is weighing a 168-million-euro aid package for Ceuta and Melilla, including a 75% rebate on Social Security contributions for companies that hire in both cities. The plan, announced by Pedro Sánchez in an interview with Cadena Ser, amounts to 8% of Ceuta's GDP. It is a striking figure for two territories that have spent decades demanding special treatment. The question is whether this injection of public money will fix the underlying problem or merely postpone it.

The measure also allows affected companies to use a ERTE, a temporary furlough scheme that has served as a buffer in recent crises. But the hiring subsidy is the heart of the plan: the cost of hiring in Ceuta or Melilla plummets. This has peine two readings. The optimistic one sees a real incentive to attract companies and retain population. The sceptical one points out that other aid packages, such as those linked to the La Palma volcano or the DANA flooding, have been slow to reach those affected. It also antiestéticars the measure will act as a magnet for companies that simply relocate from the mainland to pocket the subsidy, without creating any new productive base.

There is also a structural criticism: Ceuta and Melilla rely heavily on public employment and benefits, and a plan of this kind may reinforce that dependency rather than break it. Some blame the absence of national budgets, others point to the historical legacy. Meanwhile, so the most pessimistic rumour goes, Ceuta's residents are packing their bags.

With 168 million on the table and a 75% rebate, the open question is whether the money will create stable, diversified employment or feed corporate shell games. The answer lies not in the official gazette, but in how economic activity evolves over the coming quarters. The Government spends; the underlying debate remains open.