Spain’s Sanchez seeks to coordinate climate change pact with France, Portugal

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MADRID (Reuters) -Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Monday his government would coordinate a series of measures on climate change with neighbouring countries in response to recent weather-related disasters, such as August’s massive wildfires.

Civil Protection authorities on Sunday declared an end to one of the worst waves of wildfires recorded in the country, with more than 300,000 hectares (740,000 acres) burnt down in less than a month.

Four people died, 48 were injured and almost 36,000 had to be evacuated.

Two weeks ago, Sanchez urged for a “state pact” on climate change with all main political forces in response to the fires, which would be discussed with political parties, regional and local authorities, labour unions, activists, scientists and farmers.

He anticipated measures on fire prevention, new water infrastructure to mitigate floods, limits on housing permits on areas prone to floods or wildfires and new labour laws to protect workers during heatwaves.

“There cannot be more excuses or pauses, it is time to accelerate ecological transition,” Sanchez said in a speech in Madrid.

The government intends to coordinate the new measures with its European neighbours.

“We will propose the Portuguese and French governments to work with us on this state pact and we will tell the EU Commission to all but continue with the ecological transition,” he said.

Sanchez’s initiatives will be hard to implement since his Socialist-led government lacks a majority in parliament and several parties, such as the conservative People’s Party (PP), far right Vox and far-left Podemos already oppose the idea of a pact.

PP’s leader Alberto Nunez Feijoo on Monday said the prime minister already called for a pact on climate change in 2018 and 2022 to no avail. “This government does not have credibility,” he said.

(Reporting by Inti Landauro; editing by Emma Pinedo and Sharon Singleton)