The Socialist Group in the Cabildo of Lanzarote denounces that the government presided over by Oswaldo Betancort (CC) "has left associations and entities on the island without cultural subsidies" during the year 2025, causing what they describe as a genuine "blank year" for the island's cultural sector.
The official information sent to the Socialist Group confirms that this year "not a single subsidy has been granted" in the cultural sector, unlike in 2024, when 510,500 euros were allocated to cultural projects, traditional groups, festivals, and artistic programs of great importance to the island.
Alberto Aguiar, councilor of the Socialist Group and former head of the Culture department, considers it especially serious that the island government has left projects that articulate Lanzarote's cultural fabric without continuity: "Culture cannot be brought to zero by a political decision. This is not just any cut: it is leaving those who sustain the island's cultural identity without public support."
The PSOE warned that the lack of subsidies had "immediate effects" on the island, translating into "less cultural activity, the loss of jobs linked to the sector, the halting of educational and community projects that had been developing throughout the year, and a greater risk to the conservation of the island's cultural heritage and folklore." Furthermore, it assured that "the absence of public support weakened the opportunities for local artists and creators, who depend on these grants to produce, research, train, and disseminate their work."
Aguiar recalled that these entities work year-round in educational, heritage, and artistic creation fields. “We are talking about music schools, groups that preserve tradition, collectives that research, creators who generate cultural economy, and projects that bring culture to neighborhoods. Without aid, all of this is put at risk.”
“A year without public funding breaks processes that had been years in the making. They don't recover overnight,” Aguiar stressed
Demand urgent restoration of cultural aid
The Socialist Group will submit a question at the next plenary session to find out why subsidies have not been granted in the current year. "It must be guaranteed with planning, stability, and institutional commitment," concluded the socialist councilor.