The President of the Independent Authority for Fiscal Responsibility (AIReF), Cristina Herrero, has published an institutional letter marking the end of her term of office, in which she takes stock of the past six years and highlights the key challenges facing AIReF and fiscal policy in Spain.
In her message, the President underscores the development of the 2020–2026 Strategic Plan, structured around four pillars—supervision, sustainability, evaluation and the strengthening of guiding principles—and built on three essential foundations: independence, transparency and accountability.
Over this period, AIReF has reinforced its technical capacity through the recruitment of specialist talent and the deployment of advanced analytical tools, establishing itself as a young but firmly grounded institution within Spain’s institutional landscape.
Independence, sustainability and evaluation
The letter stresses that independence is not a formal declaration but a daily practice, exercised through rigorous, evidence-based analysis subject to external scrutiny, and through active accountability to the Cortes Generales (the Spanish Parliament).
In a context of high public debt and reform of the European fiscal framework, the President also highlighted the importance of placing the sustainability of public finances at the centre of the debate, particularly in a decentralised state.
She also underscores the consolidation of public policy evaluation as a permanent function of AIReF. Although this function does not yet enjoy the same legal backing as fiscal supervision, it is now hard to conceive of policy evaluation in Spain without AIReF.
Looking ahead
Cristina Herrero concludes by calling for political consensus in the process of appointing the new president and for shared responsibility in preserving and strengthening AIReF’s institutional role. “I call on the political groups to approach this process with the breadth of vision it demands, seeking the widest possible consensus and reinforcing AIReF’s legal and institutional foundations.”
The President expresses her conviction that the institution will continue to contribute, from a position of independence and technical rigour to a fiscal policy that combines sustainability and growth with responsibility.
