On Monday the Independent Authority for Fiscal Responsibility (AIReF) held a further meeting of its Advisory Board, the first to be chaired by Inés Olóndriz since she was appointed President of AIReF. The session was an opportunity to take stock of the institution’s work over the first half of the year and to share the main lines of the new strategic cycle that will guide AIReF’s work through to 2032.
During her remarks, Inés Olóndriz highlighted the role of the Advisory Board as a support body made up of experts of recognised standing, whose independent perspective and analytical capacity help strengthen the quality, usefulness and impact of the institution. She also thanked Rafael Bengoa for his work during his time as a member of the Board and welcomed Violeta Ruiz Almendral, Professor of Financial and Tax Law, whose experience in regional financing and budgetary stability will strengthen the advisory body’s work.
The meeting reviewed the work carried out by AIReF in recent months, during which the institution has continued to perform its fiscal oversight and assessment functions. The work presented included the Report on the initial budgets of General Government for 2026, the second Monitoring Report on the Medium-Term Fiscal-Structural Plan 2025-2028, the Study on the pension expenditure rule and the second Opinion on Fiscal Risks.
The President also outlined to the Board the main elements of the forthcoming Strategic Plan 2026-2032, currently being drawn up, which will guide AIReF’s work in a context marked by the roll-out of the new European fiscal governance framework and by structural challenges such as the high level of public debt, population ageing and rising economic and geopolitical uncertainty.
The meeting also provided an opportunity to exchange views with the members of the Advisory Board on the institution’s priorities for the coming years and to gather their input for shaping the new Plan, with the aim of monitoring the sustainability of public finances and continuing to strengthen AIReF’s role as an independent fiscal authority in the service of society.
