Last November 6, the budget of the Department of Security of the Basque Country was presented to the Basque Parliament for the year 2024. According to Advisor Josu Erkoreka (PNV), next year, EUR 790,157,000 will go to the Department of Security, 5.9% more than this year.
In absolute terms, the Department will increase by EUR 43,829,000. Taking into account developments in recent years and including 2024 data, since 2021 the general budget of the Department of Security has increased by 13.7%, 4.8% in 2022 and 3% in 2023.
Details are also given of the purpose of this budgetary increase, with the most significant expenditure being: EUR 24.1 million to finance wage costs. 22.5 million will be allocated to the purchase of hybrid vehicles for the police and the "energy efficiency" of the Ertzaintza buildings. The most important expenditure, EUR 41.4 million, will be allocated to the "digital transformation" of the Ertzaintza and emergency services 112, with the aim of "optimising the management of technological infrastructures and services".
Another EUR 2 million will be allocated to the newly created Euskadi Cybersecurity Agency, in collaboration with the Ertzaintza, in order to follow the "cybercrimes". In addition, they will allocate EUR 11 million to the Basque Parliament elections in 2024. As for the Arkaute Academy, next year’s budget will be EUR 19,835,000.