WHEN Spaniards voted at a general election in December, they chose to change the way politics works. What they did not expect was that it would stop working altogether. Yet eight weeks later, they have no government and, with a fractured parliament, might not have one until the summer. The question that quickly arose was: does it matter?
Surprisingly, many thought the answer was no. Luis De Guindos, the finance minister, estimated that Spain could hold out for six months with the current caretaker government led by Mariano Rajoy of the Popular Party (PP). A 2016 budget was passed last year. “In the short run political uncertainty is likely to have limited impact on fiscal policy,” noted Fitch, a ratings agency, after the elections. Much of the spending, on services like health and education, is done by regional governments. More important, the economy is recovering, unemployment is falling and growth looks set to continue at about 3% this year. Spanish newspapers, recalling Belgium’s 589 days without a government in 2010-11, predicted everything from an economic boom to less corruption.
But with jittery financial…
