Zupiria believes that the integration of migrants into the Basque Country is a "national emergency"

The Security Adviser of the Basque Government, Bingen Zupiria, has defended the need to address the integration of migrants in the Basque Country as a "national emergency". During his appearance at the Gran Via Forum in Bilbao, he called for integration policies that guarantee access to housing, education, health and work, while demanding obligations, and that those who commit crimes "regardless of their origin".

Zupiria has warned that migration will be one of the central themesofthe pre-campaign and campaign of the general election, along with housing, the shortage of life, war and the threat of the extreme right.

"Some will try to confuse concern for migration with concern for security, "said the counsellor, who warned that those who have arrived in the Basque Country in search of a better future may be confused as the cause of this insecurity.

According to data cited by Zupiria, 346,341 foreign-born people live in the Basque Country, 15.4% of the population, a figure that has grown at a rate of around 20,000 people per year and that has increased especially since 2022, following the pandemic.

He has also highlighted his contribution to the Basque economy, which accounts for almost 13% of social security contributions, which, in his view, reinforces the need to promote policies that contribute to social integration.

"This is our national emergency. Society demands the humanitarian integration of the people who have come to live among us, "he said, advocating access to housing, education, health and employment, without distinguishing between the recognition of rights and the requirement to fulfil their obligations.

During her speech, the counsellor questioned the use of the term "youth band" when asked about the arrest of five suspected members of the so-called "015" group in Vitoria-Gasteiz.

Zupiria has warned that the use of this term creates "great alarm" and has denied that they are organized groups like those that exist elsewhere. He has explained that they are people who commit crimes, who are monitored and monitored by the police and who, when there is sufficient evidence, are brought to justice.

He has also pointed out that there is "a special interest in some sectors of the Basque political class" in focusing on these groups.

The Councillor has linked the future security and well-being of the Basque Country to the economic capacity of the country, stressing the importance of ensuring electricity and energy supply, maintaining the roots of enterprises and the productive fabric, developing new energy sources and ensuring the food chain.

Finally, Zupiria has claimed self-government and the Economic Concert as key tools for building the "Euskal Etxea" proposed by President Imanol Pradales.