Spanish regional-central dispute over wolf conservation data

A dispute has emerged between Spanish regional governments and the central Ministry for the Ecological Transition regarding the reporting of wolf conservation data to the European Commission.

In Galicia, the regional government (Xunta de Galicia) accused the central government of using unjustified delays in submitting 2019–2024 data as a tactic, noting that such delays have already triggered an infringement procedure. The Ministry has cited alleged errors in data provided by autonomous communities to justify the hold-up, which affects assessments under the EU Habitats Directive.

Following these tensions, the Cantabrian Minister for Rural Development and Livestock, María Jesús Susinos, accused the Ministry of attempting to “falsify data.” This accusation followed claims by State Secretary for the Environment, Hugo Morán, that regional population data is based on “political” rather than “scientific” criteria. Susinos countered that the central government is prioritizing “ideological criteria” over the realities faced by livestock farmers and defended the technical rigor of regional staff.