The Local Committee of Nueva Canarias-Bloque Canarista (NC-BC) in Arrecife wants to express its "forceful rejection of the housing policy" of the government group made up of the Popular Party (PP) and the Canarian Coalition (CC).
For the Canaristas, “the orientation that both the PP and CC are giving to housing policy is wrong and seriously endangers the future of the capital.” “The housing crisis,” they continue from the organization, “is not remedied simply by giving construction licenses indiscriminately to private developers for free market housing, since we generate a real estate bubble that will be difficult to stop.”
“We are seeing that it is the government group itself that encourages the rise in purchase and rental prices. Giving licenses or enabling land without guaranteeing that the homes are intended for affordable rent or affordable purchase is truly reckless,” says Sheila Guillén, spokesperson for NC-BC in Arrecife, who cites as an example “homes in popular neighborhoods such as San Francisco Javier that reach 300,000 or 500,000 euros.”
According to Guillén, “Arrecife needs to deploy a true housing protection plan and encourage public and private developers to build affordable housing free from the speculative market. Provide tax incentives, promote agreements, negotiate with construction companies, real estate agencies, banks and individuals, in order to reduce a price increase that is getting out of hand and that expels the people of Arrecife from the capital.”
At the same time, NC-BC reiterates the need for the Arrecife City Council to prepare a technical report detailing the housing situation in the municipality and request the Government of the Canary Islands to declare a “stressed residential market zone” to temporarily curb rental prices, as other municipalities in the Canary Islands such as Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and Puerto de la Cruz have done, governed by both the left and the right.
“It is about putting everything in our power to face the main problem facing Lanzarote and Arrecife society. Housing is a fundamental element for people's lives, for their prosperity and economic, physical and mental well-being. Not enough is being done by the City Council and the Cabildo, and what little is done is detrimental in the medium and long term,” says Sheila Guillén.