Prohens emerges from the general policy debate with an agreement with the PSIB on the eco-tax.

PalmNo major announcements or any agreement with Vox. President Marga Prohens emerged from the general policy debate with an agreement with the PSIB (Spanish Socialist Workers' Party) to increase the Sustainable Tourism Tax, known as the ecotax. It is a resolution proposal and, therefore, for now, only a declaration of intent, although the Socialists will use it to pressure the government. This is not the first time that the PP has turned to the left to approve an initiative after breaking with Vox. In December 2024, when the far right left the government and scuttled the first vote on the budget, it already turned to the PSIB, MÁS for Mallorca, and Més for Menorca to prohibit construction in flood zones in the Simplification Law and agreed to keep the Democratic Memory Law in force, although it later again offered to repeal it.

This was the main tangible outcome of the general policy debate, which lasted two plenary sessions and concluded this Tuesday. Furthermore, the PP and PSIB have also agreed to create a new tax on vehicles registered outside the Canary Islands. They had been negotiating a joint text for two days, which was finally conveyed through two resolution proposals. The increase in the eco-tax will not occur immediately; the PP has set the condition of submitting the initiative to the Social Dialogue Table of the Pact for Sustainability for approval and finalization of its content. The PSIB, which abandoned this debate space last January due to disagreements with its operation, has accepted it provided it is submitted before the end of the year.

Six months ago, the Government put forward these two proposals during the debate on the Tourism Decree, but they fell through due to Vox's lack of support for the law. At that time, Prohens urged the left to negotiate separately, but both the PSIB and MÁS por Mallorca demanded a more ambitious increase in the ITS than the PP was willing to accept, and the negotiations were fruitless. This time, the PSIB has accepted that, if they don't accept a minimum proposal, the initiative will not move forward. This is the context in which its spokesperson, Iago Negueruela, must be understood. Last week, he surprised President Prohens by assuring her that he would present a proposal for an increase in the ITS almost identical to the one the government proposed six months ago, but failed to get through. He also announced a proposed tax for rental vehicles inspired by the executive branch's PowerPoint presentation. "Do you want to act? Act," said Negueruela, who maintains that the PP has no real will to curb mass tourism.

Prohens called Negueruela "an opportunist move." However, the People's Party (PP) ultimately agreed to negotiations. PP spokesperson Sebastià Sagreras denied on Monday that what the Socialists were proposing was the executive's proposal, because it does not include eliminating the tax during the off-season or exempting Balearic citizens. However, a basic text has finally been agreed upon, opening the door for Prohens, who promised anti-crowding measures a year ago and has consistently encountered a veto from Vox. "Parliament notes the need to move forward with measures such as modifying the tourist tax to adapt it to the seasonal reality of our islands and providing discounts to residents, modifying the sanitation fee to encourage responsible water consumption among large consumers, and creating a new tax on holiday vehicles not registered in the Balearic Islands." We hope that by the end of the year, the proposals presented by the Government and the legislative proposals registered in Parliament on these issues will be taken for debate in the Pact for Sustainability, with the aim of approving it as soon as sufficient consensus is reached. The PP has also supported a resolution proposal by the PSIB for Parliament to commit to "approving the bill for the implementation of the tax on holiday vehicles," as a measure to combat "transport saturation on roads by taxing all cars that circulate in the Islands, but are not registered in our community."

Claiming the agreements with Vox

The debate on the proposed resolutions followed a government oversight session in which tensions with Vox were evident. Far-right MP Sergio Rodríguez warned First Vice President and Economy Minister Antoni Costa that the ministers must "change their tone if they want to sit down and negotiate." "Do you think we can get through this term with this attitude?" he asked. "Perhaps they're taking us for fools." Costa responded by urging Vox to "continue contributing to change" by guaranteeing parliamentary agreements, or to be a "spectator" of the PP's electoral platform.

The vehicular use of Spanish in schools has once again pitted the two parties against each other. PP deputy spokesperson Marga Duran insisted that Vox's proposal is too far removed from what both parties had agreed upon. "Who's breaking the agreement?" he reproached Vox, insisting that they had agreed on a text "nine months ago" and then Manuela Cañadas's group presented a proposal that goes beyond what was agreed upon.

Finally, the PP and Vox limited their resolution proposals to reaffirming past agreements and reinforcing their anti-immigration rhetoric. The PP supported Vox's defense of "legal and clean" immigration, and the far right voted in favor of tightening access to the Guaranteed Social Income (RESOGA) and rejecting the distribution of migrant minors, as well as promoting anti-employment measures. On the other hand, the PP rejected Vox's proposal to limit irregular immigrants' access to public healthcare or further restrict their access to public aid. It also rejected the far-right initiative to prohibit schools from adapting school meals to children's cultural issues or to prohibit the teaching of Islam.

A troubled vote

The vote was eventful. The Speaker of the Parliament, Gabriel Le Senne, had to suspend the session for a few minutes to clarify the compromises (agreements between parliamentary groups to finalize the drafts). But ultimately, the plenary session approved 91 of the 162 group resolution proposals. The PP approved all of the proposals presented (60), the majority with Vox. The PSIB (Basque Socialist Workers' Party) was able to advance 7 of 46, while Vox secured the support of the PP for six of the twenty proposals it had registered. MÁS for Mallorca approved 7 of a total of 18, several of them on regional financing, as well as a social pact for the protection of the Catalan language. It also pushed through its proposal to launch the Public Health Agency for the Islands. Eco-sovereignty spokesperson Lluís Apesteguia urged the PP to combat the demographic challenge (which Prohens highlighted during his speech) by reducing tourism, and not by "criminalizing immigration." For its part, Més per Menorca has secured majority support in the chamber for six proposals, while Unides Podem's four were rejected. Representative Llorenç Córdoba of Formentera, who pledges his support to the PP, has seen all five of his proposals approved. Among them, one referring to the appointment of a senator for Formentera.