The Advisory Board of the Independent Authority for Fiscal Responsibility (AIReF) met on Wednesday to analyse the main activities carried out by the institution in 2022 and those planned for 2023. This is the fourth meeting held since the President of AIReF, Cristina Herrero, appointed the new directors in March 2021.
The President of AIReF, Cristina Herrero, opened the meeting by sharing the main actions of AIReF in 2022 and 2023. The Director of the Economic Analysis Division, Esther Gordo, then outlined the implications of the framework of governance of the EU, and the Director of the Budget Analysis Division, Ignacio Fernández-Huertas, outlined the fiscal situation in Spain and the medium-term outlook of AIReF. For his part, the Director of the Public Expenditure Evaluation Division, José María Casado, outlined the situation of his division, the progress made and the study plans underway, along with the Spending Review. Finally, the Advisory Board discussed potential actions to include in AIReF’s 2023 Action Plan.
The Board, which meets in plenary session at least twice a year, is composed of AIReF’s president, the Steering Committee – comprising Division Directors – and the nine experts appointed as advisors, all of whom are professionals of recognised national and international prestige in budgetary, economic and financial analysis. These experts are Javier Andrés, Samuel Bentolila, Antonio Cabrales, Olga Cantó, Álvaro Escribano, Beatriz González, Eckhard Janeba, Francisco Pedraja and Eva Senra.
The Board has an exclusively deliberative and technical advisory role on matters that the President submits for consultation, which are directly related to the exercise of the powers legally entrusted to AIReF and of particular relevance to the institution. It is an eminently technical board, without excluding the possibility of strategic advice being sought.
As stated in the new Regulation, the members of the Board have been appointed from among professionals of recognised prestige for a period of two years, renewable for successive periods. They act with full independence and autonomy in the exercise of their functions and may request any information they deem necessary. In addition to the plenary meetings, the members maintain an ongoing dialogue with AIReF on commonly defined lines of analysis, tools and methodologies subject to advice. They all have at least ten years’ experience in budgetary, economic and/or financial analysis.