The parliamentary spokesperson, Sebastián Franquis, criticises the Government for “failing to deliver” on the electoral promise to reduce the IGIC.
SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, 4 Nov (EUROPA PRESS) –
During a press conference on Monday with Deputy Manuel Hernández, the spokesperson for the Socialist Parliamentary Group, Sebastián Franquis, asserted that the 2025 Canarian budgets signify a “regression” in public services despite the islands’ economic growth.
He announced that his group plans to introduce a comprehensive amendment and directed criticism towards the Minister of Finance, Matilde Asián (PP), who he claimed “has not put much effort” into planning the budget.
Franquis emphasised that the Canary Islands Government seems “more focused on counting tourists and hospitality beds” rather than redistributing wealth, labelling it “unthinkable” that while the economy is expanding, salaries continue to remain “below” the pace of rising living costs.
He accused the Executive of having “not a single measure” aimed at initiating a change in the economic model, aside from the ‘forest cent’, which also shifts responsibility to local councils despite a 53% reduction in the budget allocated for combating climate change.
Furthermore, Franquis expressed the Socialists’ disapproval of the Government’s fiscal strategy, which he believes “favours the wealthiest”. He pointed out that they “abolished” the inheritance and donation tax upon their arrival in power and are now assisting these individuals to mitigate the impact of rising prices, amounting to 104 million that once acted as a “social safeguard” for the most vulnerable households.
In this context, he questioned how, if inflation is being managed as the Executive asserts, “why do they wish to maintain free transportation?”, and “what accounts for this contradiction?”
Once again, the socialist spokesperson denounced the Government for failing to reduce the IGIC for the second year in a row, reiterating that they “are once again neglecting their significant electoral pledge” and “have yet to even apologise” for it.
He reminded that during the electoral campaign, both CC and PP were “insistent” that the Government was “overindulging” and extracting money from citizens, while next year’s revenue is projected to rise by 75 million, with no reduction in the IGIC.
Franquis stated that “they have never considered it” because “they understand the repercussions” that a reduction in the IGIC would have on service provision; nonetheless, he is convinced that they will “likely” implement some cut to the IGIC in the final year of the legislature.
He struggles to comprehend why the Government demands further resources from the State when it is unwilling to enhance its own revenues, citing the Socialist Group’s bill proposing a tax on overnight stays, which would exclude residents—as is customary in various European cities—and could yield up to 250 million euros annually.
“TREMENDOUS” DECLINE IN EDUCATION
Additionally, he cautioned that the education budget is “tremendously” diverging from the 5% of GDP target established by Canarian law – it is projected to remain at 4.06% next year – and he condemned the cuts to emergency services (-17%), water resources (-47%), non-contributory pensions (-64%), and funding for dependent care, which has experienced a decline of ten million.
Franquis highlighted the “commitment” from the central government to the Canary Islands, as approximately 7,600 million of the regional accounts derive from the financing system—about 400 million more—and over 90% of the increasing budgets of the ministries is attributable to the rise in state resources.
He indicated that “another economic and social model is feasible” and that the PSOE’s proposals align with the majority of the demands voiced by Canarians in recent months, while simultaneously questioning the Government’s “fear” which has influenced their “pessimistic” approach to budget planning.
He asked the Minister of Finance, “Why do you have to penalise the Canary Islands with such policies?”, lamenting that she did not adopt the model from other PP-managed regions that could increase spending limits if income rises with the tax on overnight stays.