The Government condemns the lack of prevention and Feijóo asks for State intervention.

As half of Spain burns, especially in the regions of Galicia, Castile and León, and Extremadura, and to a lesser extent in Andalusia, the debate we heard about in the dramatic fire situation in Valencia on October 29th returns. Should the central government take control, or should the regions resolve the situation on their own, given that prevention and extinguishment are their exclusive responsibility?

Yesterday, Sara Aagesen, the Third Vice President and Minister for the Ecological Transition, reminded everyone in a radio interview that fire prevention and extinguishing is the responsibility of the regional governments. Without singling anyone out, she noted that some regions should have more resources, and above all, more stable personnel in terms of professional firefighters to respond to situations like the one we are experiencing these days.

Aagesen, who struck a much more conciliatory tone than his colleague in the Council of Ministers, Óscar Puente, offered all the resources at the government's disposal to help the autonomous communities, but implicitly made it clear that it is their responsibility to address these fires.

Feijóo accuses the government of inaction, as it should have "requested help from the European Union days ago."

In the afternoon, it was the president of the Popular Party, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, who rebutted him and called on the government to assume its responsibility in the face of the massive crisis that is destroying thousands of hectares of forest across half of Spain: "The only ones that function here are the autonomous communities and the EMU. I regret the widespread situation and the constant frivolity of some members of the government. It seems that this business of fires, immigrants, or train delays has nothing to do with the government."

Feijóo asserted that a large portion of the fires we are experiencing are the result of the actions of "arsonist terrorists" and called for the intervention of security forces to halt these attacks on the natural environment.

Furthermore, he demanded that Spain immediately ask neighboring countries and the European Union for assistance, especially with more air resources, a request that Interior Minister Fernando Grande Marlaska made effective last night by requesting support from the European Civil Protection Mechanism.

As the minister explained in an interview last night on SER, the government has requested two Canadair tanker planes, each with a high capacity of more than 5,500 liters, to combat the fires.

Bolaños maintains that a government cannot choose crises, but it can decide how to deal with them.

The PP leader, who appeared in Chandreixa de Queixa – one of the areas where the longest-running fire in this region is burning – alongside the president of the Xunta, Alfonso Rueda, stated that the Government “is still on vacation and whoever doesn't is making jokes about people's misfortune,” referring to Minister Oscar Puente.

The Minister of Transport appeared yesterday. And, ignoring the repeated calls for his resignation from the People's Party (PP), he reaffirmed his social media posts, asserting that "I wasn't joking, I was criticizing." "And if anyone thinks I'm going to take a step back from my work to demand accountability from the Popular Party governments, they're mistaken," he concluded, challenging the Génova party.

Traveling to Almería to visit the progress of the construction work on the high-speed line between the Andalusian city and Murcia, the minister reflected on the attitude of the Popular Party and emphasized the double standard with which, in his opinion, Spanish politics operates: "There are those who can score a goal with their hands, and there are those who have to go with their hands tied behind their backs," he noted.

Minister Aagesen calls for unity and demands better environmental policies from the regions.

The Valladolid native reinforced his argument by digging into the archives. He recalled statements made by the current president of Andalusia, Juanma Moreno, in 2018, when, as leader of the opposition, he criticized the then president, Susana Díaz, for not being "on the ball" during forest fires in the region. "Where is Moreno Bonilla today? Is it so serious to ask him to be present?" he asked.

Puente's confrontational strategy, criticized again yesterday by PP spokesperson Elías Bendodo, is supported by the entire government, as evidenced by the explicit support of the Minister of the Presidency, Justice, and Parliamentary Relations, Félix Bolaños, whose influence within Pedro Sánchez's administration is paramount.

While some twenty hot spots remained active across the country yesterday, Compromís urged the adoption of "a common strategy against climate change and for emergency prevention," while Podemos called for greater involvement from the government "after verifying that some regions are overwhelmed." Not even the most out-of-control fire can extinguish the polarization.