The Cabildo de Tenerife presented yesterday its budget for 2023, which amounts to 946,865,673 euros, which represents a growth of 20.7% (162 million more) compared to this year’s accounts, while the consolidated one, which includes to the entire insular public sector, exceeds 1,055 million, becoming the largest in the history of the insular Corporation.
“An important, expansive budget, more powerful than that of previous years and that has been the result of a long work process to try to hit on those issues that are a priority for the Island, and of negotiation. We have met with the opposition groups trying to seek support to continue promoting the Island and avoid a stoppage due to not having an approved document,” said the president of the Cabildo, Pedro Martín, who thanked the PP for its support for island accounts.
“And for overcoming our differences and not playing the short-termism that, since there is little left for the elections, we are going to try to hinder the Government of the Cabildo as much as we can,” the island president emphasized. This agreement, he pointed out, has meant the incorporation of 34 Partido Popular amendments worth some 17 million and related to different areas, such as the South and North trains. “There are games for those projects. In any case, we are confident that throughout the first half of next year we will finally have the mobility study of the Island, which will mark the lines of work in this and other areas of mobility”, he qualified.
Martín was accompanied in the presentation of the budgets by the First Vice President and Minister of Roads, Mobility, Innovation and Culture, Enrique Arriaga, and the Second Vice President and Minister of the Presidency, Finance and Modernization, Berta Pérez, who stated that these are some accounts that distribute the resources “based on criteria of efficiency, social solidarity, sustainability and territorial balance, all municipalities are served and counted on”.
He also highlighted the 40% increase in investments, up to 269 million, with 88% of the spending in the municipalities, as well as the items destined for the IASS and Mobility. He also appreciated that in 2023 the remuneration of the island government team will not be raised and that in the 2022 accounts the highest budget execution in the history of the Cabildo has been achieved.
For his part, Enrique Arriaga emphasized that next year’s accounts “address the two great concerns of Tenerife society: social action, which accounts for 25% of the budget, and the second, mobility, roads and public transport , which takes another 25%, and we also have the largest public investment that the Cabildo has made”.
Breakdown by areas
Regarding the breakdown of the accounts, Pedro Martín explained that the Social Area is one of those with the largest budget, with 291 million, of which 259.5 million are to the IASS, which grows by 9% and will allow the start of the works in 12 social and health centers that will mean 888 additional jobs, as well as the creation of 167 new jobs, among other lines.
Regarding Employment, 10.3 million are expected and, as a novelty, the implementation of incentives for hiring in the private sector stands out, with 2 million, maintaining other programs such as Neighborhoods for Employment, with 3.9 million. In relation to socioeconomic development, programs to support trade, SMEs and the self-employed (3.1 million) will be promoted, with special emphasis on trade and crafts, and 6.4 million will be invested in the La Campana industrial estate.
For Tourism, the Cabildo allocates 32.9 million (23.4% more), of which five million are for improvements to the coastline and the island president highlighted the two million to begin the rehabilitation works of the Hotel Taoro, in Puerto from the cross.
Regarding the Primary Sector, Pedro Martín valued the 33 million that are budgeted, almost half of which goes to direct aid. In addition, he pointed out that the Cabildo will assume the extra energy costs so as not to increase the price of water.
Likewise, with regard to the Natural Environment and Security, 62 million (8.34% more) are allocated, with 3.1 million to continue working on the eradication of the subterranean termite and other invasive species, and 8.4 million for performances the Teide National Park.
Sustainable Development and Climate Change has 69 million, of which 37.5 million will go to waste management and 18 million for new hydraulic works. Meanwhile, Municipal Cooperation and Housing will have 26.8 million, with 15 million for sanitation works and 5 million for the acquisition of affordable rental properties in the most stressed municipalities.
Next, Arriaga detailed his areas that Mobility and Highways will have a total budget of 126.5 million, growing by 68%, and of which 101 million will go to subsidies for public transport. Likewise, it is planned to acquire 40 new buses, which will be added to the 130 that will arrive throughout 2023. There are also items for the creation of the direct access lane to the ULL (TF-5), the drafting of the project for the underground of the entrance lane to the Santa Cruz interchange and improvement works in the Padre Anchieta interchange, among others. Meanwhile, Carretera has 88.6 million.
In Innovation, the budget is 6.9 million, with 1.8 million for the Telecommunications Island Ring and 4.9 million for the Talentum Program, among others.
