Podemos Canarias announced this Thursday that it will register a formal complaint before the National Commission of Markets and Competition (CNMC) against the airline Ryanair, which it accuses of using the withdrawal of routes in the islands as a mechanism of "institutional pressure".
In a statement, the formation has demanded the opening of a sanctioning file considering that the airline incurs in a possible practice of covert economic blackmail after announcing a 10% cut in its operating capacity on national routes, particularly in connections with the Peninsula.
The origin of the conflict lies in the 6.5% increase in airport fees approved by Aena, which Ryanair has directly linked to the suppression of flights from Tenerife North and Gran Canaria.
According to Podemos, the company would be using its market position to pressure public administrations, mainly affecting the connectivity of Canarian residents.
Thus, Podemos has pointed out that of 400,000 air seats that will disappear in the Canary Islands, about 130,000 correspond to routes usually used by residents, while connections aimed at foreign tourism from the south of Tenerife and Gran Canaria would not be affected.
“We are not going to allow the connectivity of the Canary Islands to be used as a lever of pressure. If a company decides to withdraw to force advantages, the CNMC must act to protect residents and fair competition,” declared the deputy of Podemos in Congress Noemí Santana.
Podemos Canarias has also questioned the public subsidies that Ryanair receives and that has amounted to 8.9 million euros in tourist sponsorships by the Government of the Canary Islands, to which are added the state bonuses to residents that are around 800 million annually throughout the country.
Thus, the purple formation has urged to reorient those resources towards companies based in the Canary Islands that generate employment and pay taxes in the archipelago.
Ryanair will be denounced before the CNMC for commercial blackmail and institutional pressure by Podemos Canarias
They demand the opening of a sanctioning file to the Irish airline, which, according to reports, has received almost 9 million euros in sponsorships from the Government of the Canary Islands
September 4 2025 (11:21 WEST)
