In a recent national survey one in four Spaniards said that they were against the autonomous region composition of the Spanish state.

The sentiment is growing, fed it appears by the nationalist regions of País Vasco and Cataluña, especially the latter with its ongoing calls for independence.

The percentage of people that are in favour of maintaining the present hideously expensive system whereby Spain has a central government and 17 autonomous ones, some with their own embassies abroad, has dropped 25% in only two years.

The percentage that is in favour of a more centralised government varies according to the person’s affiliation, obviously, so that amongst conservative voters the figure is much higher, standing at 40%, whereas the socialist voters with the same attitude is only 18% – but even this sector has doubled since April.

A total of 2,500 people were asked to give their opinions in the poll, which was carried out just one week before the massive demonstration in favour of independence in Barcelona where 1.5m people turned out.

Without a doubt the present economic crisis, with tremendous cuts in spending on a national and autonomous regional level, has highlighted just how much the present system soaks up, which, administratively speaking is cumbersome, fraught with a duplication of departments; i.e., departments within the Central Government and the regional ones whose areas overlap unnecessarily. Furthermore, where the Central Government has transferred a particular responsibility to a regional authority, together with the public functionaries that operate it, so the number of said workers always mysteriously increases.

(News: Spain)