Summary - TST 3-4
TRANSPORTES, SERVICIOS Y TELECOMUNICACIONES
Pilar Berdún Chéliz
La política de ayudas directas a la industria naval y la marina mercante en torno al cambio de siglo (1876-1918)
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[ Abstract ]
The use of public expenditures as an instrument for promoting the merchant marine and the shipbuilding industry was intensified in Europe during the last quarter of the XIX century. In fact, the subventions for the private shipbuilding and navigation industry constitute one of the most important branches of this policy. The principal aim of this paper is to look deeply into this matter -that we have defined as “the direct aid policy for the sea industries and comunications”-, centering our attention in the spanish case. To do it better, we deal with the two types of aids that used to be implemented: postal subsidies and premiums, and we analyse them in two different but connected directions. Firstly, from a legislative point of view, this paper make a revision of the main rules related with the merchant marine and the shipbuilding industry. Secondly, from the economic point of view, and in order to proof the effectiveness of the policy, we have examinated the way in which every item of the Budget, and its liquidation, were affected by such rules. From ours outcomes we can highlight that the total quantity of the aid was not very important in absolute terms. Despite of it, these amounts were sizeable in relative terms when we take into account the others fundamental items from the Ministery of Public Works. In addition, it is necessary to consider that the most part of the aid was implemented in form of postal subventions that were destinated to an only company. At the same time the premiums only adquired a significant weight after 1911. Moreover, in the following years the premiums came from the aproval of extraordinary credits usually paid with a great delay.
The use of public expenditures as an instrument for promoting the merchant marine and the shipbuilding industry was intensified in Europe during the last quarter of the XIX century. In fact, the subventions for the private shipbuilding and navigation industry constitute one of the most important branches of this policy. The principal aim of this paper is to look deeply into this matter -that we have defined as “the direct aid policy for the sea industries and comunications”-, centering our attention in the spanish case. To do it better, we deal with the two types of aids that used to be implemented: postal subsidies and premiums, and we analyse them in two different but connected directions. Firstly, from a legislative point of view, this paper make a revision of the main rules related with the merchant marine and the shipbuilding industry. Secondly, from the economic point of view, and in order to proof the effectiveness of the policy, we have examinated the way in which every item of the Budget, and its liquidation, were affected by such rules. From ours outcomes we can highlight that the total quantity of the aid was not very important in absolute terms. Despite of it, these amounts were sizeable in relative terms when we take into account the others fundamental items from the Ministery of Public Works. In addition, it is necessary to consider that the most part of the aid was implemented in form of postal subventions that were destinated to an only company. At the same time the premiums only adquired a significant weight after 1911. Moreover, in the following years the premiums came from the aproval of extraordinary credits usually paid with a great delay.