The Socialist Group in the Cabildo of Lanzarote has denounced that the government of Oswaldo Betancort has scandalously violated the Spending Rule in the 2024 financial year, now forcing the institution to face an Economic-Financial Plan to try to stop the lack of control.
According to official data, the Cabildo has exceeded the legal spending limit by 60,710,876.48 euros, a figure that highlights the irresponsible and absolutely unsustainable economic management of the current president. The settlement for 2023 amounted to 106 million euros, while under Betancort's mandate, spending has skyrocketed to 171 million in just one year.
This has generated a financing need at the end of the year of more than 10.5 million euros in negative, which now requires the development of an adjustment plan to try to correct the budget hole.
Ariagona González, spokesperson for the Socialist Group, has been forceful: “This is what happens when you govern based on headlines, propaganda and excessive parties, while ignoring the most basic principles of public management. Oswaldo Betancort's economic policy is reckless: money has been burned on celebrations and whims, and now we will all have to pay the consequences.”
The Spending Rule, included in the Budget Stability Law, prevents administrations from shooting up their spending uncontrollably even if they have more income, precisely to avoid imbalances and guarantee sustainability in the medium and long term.
“Budget stability is not a whim, it is an obligation. Oswaldo Betancort has not only blown the spending ceiling, he has also undermined the financial credibility of the Cabildo. He has pulled out the checkbook as if there were no tomorrow and now we have to make an adjustment plan that, as always, will be paid for by those at the bottom,” added González.
The Socialist Group demands immediate public explanations from the president of the Cabildo, as well as a detailed breakdown of the spending that has led to this situation:
“The people of Lanzarote deserve to know where each euro has gone and how they plan to cover this hole without cutting essential services. What is at stake is not only the present, but the viability of the coming years.”
