The Catalan government describes the declaration of Esporles as a tense zone as "symbolic".

PalmThe Balearic Government has described the declaration of Esporles as a stressed housing market as "symbolic," considering it to be outside the City Council's jurisdiction, although it has expressed respect for a decision it views as a political stance. In the press conference following the Governing Council meeting, the spokesperson for the regional government, Antoni Costa, stated that "the declaration of Esporles is purely symbolic" and expressed his opposition to its implementation, considering it a "populist" measure that "doesn't work." It should be recalled that the Esporles City Council plenary session approved a motion this Thursday from the PAS-MÁS per Esporles party to officially declare the municipality as an area with a stressed housing market, in accordance with the criteria established in State Law 12/2023 on the right to housing. The initiative has the support of MÉS per Mallorca, which participated in the process of drafting and promoting the proposal. According to the City Council, the decision responds to an increasingly evident reality: "the sustained and disproportionate increase in rental and purchase prices, the structural shortage of affordable housing, and the excessive financial burden many families must bear to continue living in the municipality." With this self-declaration, the City Council formally acknowledges that Esporles exhibits indicators typical of a strained housing market, in line with Article 18 of Law 12/2023, which defines these areas as having housing costs exceeding 30% of household income or when housing prices have risen. The objective is to protect the right to housing, prevent residential displacement, and "ensure that living in Esporles remains possible for its residents." The motion formally reiterates to the Government that, following the declaration, it must abide by the decision and study the indicators to further support the declaration of Esporles as a strained area. The City Council will also prepare a supplementary municipal report with data on the local residential market and will assess the possibility of filing an administrative or judicial appeal in the event of an express refusal.

Residential Tension

PASO-MÁS defended in the plenary session the municipal commitment to continue developing measures to facilitate access to housing and mitigate housing tension. This includes promoting public and affordable housing, mobilizing vacant homes and available land, protecting the roots of the resident population, strengthening municipal registries linked to supply and demand, coordinating with other administrations, and preparing to implement the measures provided for in state regulations in the event of a formal declaration of a tension zone. The motion was drafted jointly by the PASO-MÁS group for Esporles and MÁS per Mallorca. The coordinator of MÁS per Mallorca, Lluís Apesteguia, participated in the working session with Josep Ferrà, coordinator of PASO-MÁS and mayor of Esporles, and the Councilor for Urban Planning, Maria Nadal.