The spokesperson for the Socialist Group in the Tenerife Council, Aarón Afonso, reported on Tuesday that the government of the Canary Islands Coalition and Partido Popular breached the spending rule in their 2024 budget execution.
According to the party’s statement, “this serious deviation, which exceeds the legal limit by 117 million euros (almost 15%), forces the council to approve an Economic and Financial Plan (EFP) this Wednesday to rebalance its accounts in 2025 and 2026.”
“It is a clear fiscal irresponsibility,” stated Afonso, “the Ministry of Finance had already been warning quarterly about the risk of failing to comply with the spending rule, and the council, turning a deaf ear, continued spending without taking sufficient corrective measures.”
According to the socialist spokesperson, the main cause of this imbalance is the “excessive and imprudent” use of the Treasury Surplus for General Expenses (TSGE), an extraordinary resource that, instead of being managed cautiously, soared uncontrolled.
This situation, warns the socialist spokesperson, far from being a mere accounting note, has “direct and very serious” consequences for the Island.
The breach of the Organic Budget Stability Law implies that the Council will be subject to enhanced financial control by the Government of the Canary Islands, with the possibility of credit retention and a negative impact on institutional credibility before citizens and investors.
“The Tenerife Council has led the island to a situation of financial imbalance that will mortgage its investment and management capacity in the coming years,” lamented Afonso.
