The opposition Popular Party (PP) pledged on Wednesday to create some 3.5 million new jobs over the next four years if its candidate for prime minister, Mariano Rajoy, wins the November 20 general elections.

In announcing the campaign promise, PP spokesman Esteban González Pons didn't offer any details of his party's proposed job stimulus plan but suggested that it would go hand-in-hand with a restructuring of the country's tax system. "Spain needs to reorganize its tax system in order to redistribute the burden and foment competitiveness and economic growth," Pons said.

The announcement prompted an immediate reaction from the Socialist Party. In a statement, deputy campaign manager Antonio Hernando called on the PP to make "serious" pledges instead of "crazy ideas to generate millions of jobs with out giving rigorous formulas."