The Socialist Parliamentary Group in the Canary Islands has taken the initiative to present a Bill in the Regional Chamber to apply a tourist tax in the Canary Islands, in the face of what they call the Canary Islands Government's “cowardice and paralysis” in implementing measures to redistribute the wealth of the tourism sector in the islands.
The tourist tax promoted by the Socialist Group aims to tax visits from tourist stays and return to the citizens of the Canary Islands the wealth generated by the tourism sector in the islands, exempting Canary Island residents from paying it, and would mean an income for the coffers of the autonomous community of 250 million euros per year, which will allow the increase of its spending capacity.
The spokesperson for the Socialist Group, Sebastián Franquis; the spokesperson for Economy, Tamara Raya, and the spokesperson for Finance, Manuel Hernández, have presented the initiative, which adds to the Bill to install adjustable beds in tourist accommodation in the Canary Islands as demanded by the group of cleaning ladies in the islands, and “thereby promote measures that correct the adverse effects of the tourism sector on the citizens of the Canary Islands, and return to the citizens the wealth it generates.”
The socialist deputies stated that this initiative is the response to the “inaction” of the Government of the Canary Islands to the demands of the citizens of the Canary Islands who demonstrated last April and who will do so again on October 20, since, in their opinion, during these months they “have kicked balls out.”
“The PSOE is not going to turn a deaf ear to the citizens of the Canary Islands. We offer answers that allow us to redistribute the wealth generated by our main economic engine, and correct the overpressure that our infrastructures and our fragile and fragmented territory support,” they highlighted.
To this end, rates are established ranging from one euro to 3.5 euros, depending on the category and type of establishment, with the possibility that municipalities can establish a municipal surcharge.
The initiative also includes the creation of the Canary Islands Sustainable Tourism Promotion Body, to overcome the “limited” vision of the current corporate purpose of Promotur Turismo Canarias and that its new purpose is the promotion of tourism and tourism activities and services in the Canary Islands, from a perspective of sustainability, promotion, improvement and conservation of tourism infrastructures, as well as the promotion of socio-labor integration in tourism.
In addition, the creation of the Sustainable Tourism Promotion Commission is proposed as a planning and advisory body on the development of sustainable tourism planning and the development of environmental and sustainable tourism actions.
It also urges the creation of the Fund for sustainable environmental tourism actions in the Canary Islands, which will allocate its resources to finance actions to recover environmental spaces, the development of infrastructures that improve sustainability and actions to improve socio-economic redistribution.
The socialist deputies asked the Government of the Canary Islands and the political groups that support it to “listen” to the citizens of the Canary Islands and act accordingly.