The opposition party said the island’s tourism system is ‘facing collapse’
Majorca’s opposition party has called for the number of tourists visiting the Balearic Islands to be cut by “40%”. MÉS Per Mallorca lodged a non-legislative proposal in Parliament on October 28, calling for strict restrictions on the number of visitors to the island, banning private jets, stopping the expansion of airports and limiting cruise ship number to one per day.
In a statement published on the party’s website, MÉS warned that the “weight of tourism in the economy as a whole is excessive”. It proposes that the “ceiling of places be 40% lower than the number of existing places”.
Lluís Apesteguia, the general coordinator of MÉS for Mallorca, said the island is “in the face of collapse”. He added: “It is essential to make policies to reduce tourism and economic diversification.”
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The group also demanded that Majorca’s government “put aside any kind of tourism promotion.” Additionally it calls for an allocation of funds generated from tourist taxes to be used to acquire tourist properties and “return them to the residential market.”
The proposal comes after months of ongoing discussion across the Balearic Islands over the impact of tourism. Demonstrations were held across the summer as residents took to the streets to express concerns over the rising number of visitors.
At the start of last month Majorca’s government announced a proposed hike in tourist tax on a seasonal basis. President Marga Prohens said the measures are a “tool” to use for the “regulation of tourist flows”. Speaking in parliament, she said that the tax could be increased in the “high season” months, but would be lowered over the winter.
Ms Prohens has spoken about placing limits on tourists before, but has never given an exact figure. In a post on X on October 22, Ms Prohens said: “The best way to defend tourism in our islands is to lead its transformation, talking about limits and containment. We focus on a strategy of de-seasonalization and also of a change in the tourist segment more oriented towards a higher quality tourist.”
