Jon Echevarría y los datos

Jon Echevarría, a young member of the Spanish People's Party (PP), made a claim during a television broadcast that workers in Spain under the current progressive government pay more in taxes than they did prior to the pandemic. The PP members laughed at his statement, but Echevarría persisted, insisting that a worker earning 18,000 euros today pays over three times the amount in Income Tax (IRPF) compared to 2019.

The correct figure, verified by economist Jon González, is that 18,000 euros in gross income in 2026 results in 623.8 euros in IRPF. The real purchasing power of a salary earning 14,290 euros in 2019 equated to 157 euros in today's terms, a nearly quadruple increase. The source of this discrepancy lies in the lack of adjustment in the IRPF rates over the past decade, which, due to inflation, has placed taxpayers in higher tax brackets without corresponding increases in real income.

Echevarría's assertion was accurate, and González's calculations were reliable, revealing that the Spanish government is benefiting economically from raising tax rates while falsely claiming improvements in workers' lives. According to professor Santiago Calvo, all salaried workers in 2026 pay more IRPF than their 2019 counterparts, even those in lower tax brackets, including those affected by nominal deductions for salaries close to the minimum wage.

The OECD's Taxing Wages report for Spain indicates that the country is one of the most unfriendly tax environments for workers, not solely because of the highest aggregate fiscal burden in Europe, but because the direct tax burden on each worker's generated value has reached levels that should shame a government claiming to prioritize worker welfare.