Negueruela (PSIB) marks distances with Aena: "They are turning the airports into a kind of small market"

PalmaThe spokesperson for the Socialist parliamentary group, Iago Negueruela, raised his tone against Aena this morning. In a press conference this Monday, Negueruela distanced himself from the manager of the airport network, 51% controlled by the State. "I will not defend Aena, as I am quite against it," he stated, and accused it of having "behaviors that are inadmissible" and of turning the infrastructure into a "sort of flea market" that "is far from" offering a professional service: "It does not surprise me that people are protesting."

However, the Socialist stressed that President Marga Prohens had known for months about the passenger increase forecasts included in the DORA III document and not only did she do nothing, but she requested an expansion of the capacity of the Balearic airports, which the Government has denied. In the same vein, he accused the Popular Party member of requesting areduction in airport taxes from Aena with the goal of attracting more passengers. After the President of the Government, Marga Prohens, expressed her disagreement with Aena's forecasts of receiving 50 million passengers by 2031, Negueruela considered the position on the taxes "a contradiction." If the Government requests a "reduction in airport taxes," this "would benefit," he insisted, Ryanair and Easyjet. He also argued that this decrease would imply an increase in passengers. "Isn't this a contradiction? It is simply lying," he argued: "We oppose the growth of seats and that of the airports."

The PP spokesperson, Sebastià Sagreras, denied this and lashed out at the socialists for wanting to "deceive the public": "Stop this cynicism". The controversy erupted after the DORA III report attributed in a paragraph to the Government the fact of having requested more investments to expand the capacity of the airports, a claim that the Executive flatly denied. Subsequently, it sent the letter from the Minister of Housing, José Luis Mateo, to the Airport Coordination Committee of the Islands, in which he specified that the improvements requested were not "linked to an increase in passengers".

Sagreras considered that the PSIB is exercising "cynicism" when it lashes out at Aena. "The PP rejects the expansion of the airports", he said, and criticized that the PSIB deputy, Pilar Costa, attended the demonstration against the airport expansion on Sunday in Ibiza. "It is not that the PSIB is demonstrating against the measures that they themselves took, but rather that they go to demonstrations against the measures that they themselves are taking", he said. "The PSIB did not support the airport co-management law", he continued: "I don't know who they think they are deceiving".