Spain to rescue regions with $19.7 billion for unpaid bills

The Spanish government is putting finishing touches to a new bailout plan for its highly indebted regions to settle 15 billion euros ($19.7 billion) of unpaid bills to suppliers, Spanish Economy Minister Luis de Guindos said on Saturday. The plan will cover bills which remained unpaid after a first programme worth 30 billion euros last year covered bills for services ranging from health care to waste management.
"We're looking into the final figure but the treasury minister has said it would be around 15 billion euros," de Guindos said at a press conference following a meeting of European Union finance ministers in Dublin. "It was hidden debt," he added, saying the new plan would have an impact on the Spain's debt but not on its deficit. The European Commission forecasts Spanish debt will reach 95.8 percent of Gross Domestic Product this year and the 15-billion-euro plan will likely add around 1.5 percent of GDP in the total liabilities of the countries.