The PP accuses the Minister of Education of being "missing" in Ceuta's back-to-school and criticizes that children "go with a pepper spray"

The return to classrooms in Ceuta is marked this Tuesday by the security measures deployed in educational centers and by the concern of part of the educational community after the migratory crisis experienced in the city at the end of July. In this context, the PP spokesperson in Congress, Miguel Tellado, has lashed out at the Government and criticized that students return to schools under circumstances that, in his opinion, generate concern among families.

Through a message published on X, Tellado has assured that the start of the school year is not marked by the usual excitement of schoolchildren, but by concern. "Today the return to school for Ceuta children will not be news for the excitement of the first day or for the desire to see friends, but for the concern of their parents and their teachers," he wrote.

Hoy la vuelta al cole de los niños ceutíes no será noticia por la ilusión del primer día ni por las ganas de ver a los amigos, sino por la preocupación de sus padres y sus profesores.

No hay derecho a que en una ciudad española los pequeños acudan a las aulas con un spray de…

— Miguel Tellado (@Mtelladof) September 8, 2026

"There is no right for children in a Spanish city to go to school with a pepper spray in their backpack," Tellado stated. 

The school year in Ceuta 

The school year begins in Ceuta with 12,870 students enrolled across early childhood, primary, secondary, and baccalaureate stages. Students return to 13 public schools, six subsidized private schools, and six high schools in a city that still maintains tension derived from the massive arrival of people from Morocco at the end of July. Around 9,000 migrants currently remain distributed across different points of the city, according to data from the Ceuta government.

Given this scenario, Education has established reinforced surveillance: there will be private security in all schools, including subsidized private ones. The Minister of Education, Milagros Tolón, has defended that the centers are safe and explained that the measure responds to requests conveyed by the educational community during meetings held in recent weeks. The objective, according to the department, is to progressively restore normality in the classrooms.

Tellado, however, used his criticism to directly attack the head of Education. "And meanwhile, the Minister of Education disappeared, like Sánchez and the rest of the gang. Elections now," the popular leader published. 

From the educational sector, difficulties have also been warned. CSIF has demanded that the priority be to guarantee a safe return to classrooms and has warned that the system is at its capacity limit. The union also points out that the approximately 1,500 unaccompanied minors under protection in the city could increase pressure on centers that already have high ratios and limited resources.