The passage of the Tour through the Basque Country has reflected the evolution of Basque society in constructing coexistence

• The Basque Government congratulates the police and emergency teams that have worked on the Tour de France

The spokesperson for the Basque Government and Minister for Culture and Language Policy, Bingen Zupiria, appeared at the usual press conference after the Governing Council, together with the First Vice Lehendakari and Security Minister Josu Erkoreka, , the Minister for Education  Jokin Bildarratz, and the Minister for Health, Gotzone Sagardui. 

The Basque Government spokesperson stressed that having the Tour pass through the Basque Country has served to show the evolution of Basque society over the last 30 years in terms of social coexistence.  “It has been the event that has had the greatest social adhesion in our community in recent decades,” he pointed out

Likewise, Bingen Zupiria recalled that the announcement of the departure of the Tour was made public in 2019, in the midst of the pandemic, and 3 years later, “we can say that the Tour has been a great celebration that allows us to overcome that upset”. 

SECURITY FOR THE TOUR

For his part, the First Vice-Lehendakari and Security Minister, Josu Erkoreka, valued as “a success” the security that all the Basque institutions contributed to on the occasion of the passage through the Basque Country of the Tour de France. According to Erkoreka, it was an unprecedented challenge for all the agents in charge of Public Security in the country and “we can say that the Basque Country faced up to in a spectacular way”. For this reason, he wanted to convey the Basque Government's congratulations to each and every one of those teams that make up the Basque Emergency Care System.

Specifically, he made a special mention of the Ertzaintza, in charge of preparing, directing and coordinating with the rest of the police the "Master Plan of Public Security" for the Tour. “The agents of the Ertzaintza have shown, once again, that they are part of a comprehensive and qualified police, capable of facing any public security challenge that may arise. They have always been part of the important moments of this country. Commitment, responsibility and dedication. Caring for and protecting the whole of Basque society in an historical moment as special as this one. Eskerrik asko [Thank you]!” he said. 

The Secretary of State also thanked the public for their response. On the one hand, the altruistic and generous work of the “Tour Lagunak”, which was an important part of the security operation. On the other hand, thanks to citizens in general. “We have caused inconvenience to mobility. Our streets and roads have suffered cuts and changes of direction. But the public has been understanding and has shown exemplary behaviour following all the instructions of the authorities,” he stressed.

Recalling that the same days coincided with Operation Summer Departure, Operation Crossing the Strait and the mobility restrictions of the Tour as it passed through the Basque Country, Josu Erkoreka has shown his satisfaction by reporting that there were no major accidents.

AGREEMENTS OF THE GOVERNING COUNCIL

As usual, the spokesperson, Bingen Zupiria, provided information on other issues discussed in the Governing Council meeting, including the following:

The Governing Council has agreed to increase by 750,000 euros the aid to local entities for socio-labour inclusion programmes for recipients of Minimum Living Income and RGI, which means that this exchange managed by Lanbide has now reached almost 5.2 million euros.

Also linked to the Department of Labour and Employment and facing the challenge of a career path during unemployment, the Council approved to grant a direct subsidy of 294,000 euros to the BBK Foundation for the development of a training project for the training of unemployed people in advanced digital skills. To this end, the Bootcamp methodology will be used, orientating the training towards professional practice and immediate employability.

Likewise, the Governing Council today approved a new call for the Emakunde Prize for Equality. An award that aims to highlight and publicly recognise the performance of natural or legal persons, public or private, who have stood out for their work in the field of equality between women and men. The award is 14,400 euros.

With regard to Culture and Language Policy, the Government has approved a call for grants of 500,000 euros for mediation, cultural and social innovation projects. The Bidez call has been approved, which aims to promote projects committed to research, innovation and contemporary art through mediation and networking.

In addition, today's meeting approved the model to be followed by all departments and autonomous bodies for the new planning period for the standardization of the use of the Basque language. This model will be based on the KEMEN methodology, i.e. indicators related to the management of Basque standardisation. In this way, all the Departments and Autonomous Bodies of the Basque Government that must develop plans for the standardisation of Basque, as well as the Public Entities of Private Law and the Public Companies dependent on them, will have a model of support in the development of their plans.