The Independent Authority for Fiscal Responsibility (AIReF) received today a delegation from the Independent Fiscal Institution of Brazil and held several working sessions to explain to their Brazilian counterparts the peculiarities and the activity of the Spanish institution.
In the first session, AIReF explained how the institution was set up in Spain under Organic Law 6/2013 that provided the institution legal base, with the aim of ensuring compliance with the principles of budgetary stability and financial sustainability. During the session, the characteristics of AIReF and the role it plays in Spanish society were explained in detail.
In a second session, the institution’s communication strategy was explained, based on transparency, one of AIReF’s guiding principles, along with independence and accountability. The representatives of the Brazilian institution were also given details of the application of the principle of comply or explain by which the recommendations issued by AIReF in its reports are governed. Brief mention was made of the role of evaluation as a permanent function of AIReF with the aim of achieving better quality in public finances and the recent launch of the observatory of findings and proposals was discussed.
Finally, a third session was held on AIReF’s role in the fiscal framework and the changes brought about by the economic and health crisis. AIReF ensures compliance with the principle of budgetary stability as set out in the Constitution by analysing economic forecasts and continuously assessing the budget cycle and public borrowing. It also analyses fiscal sustainability in the medium and long term.