The forecast that the Serra de Tramuntana will be one of the most crowded areas in Mallorca during the total solar eclipse on August 12 has led the Government to prepare an exceptional traffic restriction device. The objective is to avoid a collapse, but the foreseen exceptions have generated much controversy. While thousands of residents of municipalities located a few minutes from the Serra will not be able to access it by vehicle, tourists who have paid hundreds or even thousands of euros to stay in a hotel in the area will be exempt from the limitations. Thus, the exceptions set by the Government project, once again, the idea of a privatization of the territory of the Balearic Islands and reinforce the perception that those who pay have more rights to transit this territory than those who live there. "Once again, the rights of tourists who pay are above those of the residents who live on the island," remarks Joan Moranta, president of GOB.

The authorization of a private electronic music festival on the beach of l'Arenal in Sant Antoni, coinciding with the solar eclipse on August 12, has opened a new controversy in the municipality. The entity Salvem Sa Badia de Portmany denounces that the event, dubbed Feels Like Eclipse Festival, will entail the "privatization" of a public space during one of the most anticipated astronomical phenomena of the year, as the organization is selling tickets for 45 euros that include "front-row seats for an unforgettable experience" on the main beach of the municipality.

Nearly 30,000 patients in the Balearic Islands' public healthcare system received treatment in private facilities during 2024. Specifically, the Balearic Islands Health Service (IB-Salut) referred 29,141 people to private healthcare providers, according to official data published in the Official Gazette of the Parliament of the Balearic Islands (BOPIB) in written response to PS6: 25:2 for consultations and diagnostic tests, and 1,489 for surgical procedures. This volume is not due to a one-off occurrence, but rather to a structural trend that reinforces the importance of contracted services within the healthcare model to alleviate public waiting lists while private ones grow longer. The Balearic Islands is one of the autonomous communities with the highest rate of private insurance coverage, with over 400,000 policyholders. The public hospital that refers the most patients to private facilities for consultations and tests is the Manacor Hospital, with 11,178 outpatient referrals in a single year. It handles more patients than all the other hospitals on the island combined. It is followed by Can Misses Hospital in Ibiza (5,408), Inca Regional Hospital (5,279), Son Llàtzer Hospital (3,196), Mateu Orfila General Hospital in Maó (2,386), and Son Espases University Hospital (205). The reason for the high volume of referrals from Manacor is that the hospital, which opened in 2002, has experienced significant growth in the population it serves, making it necessary to refer patients to alleviate waiting lists. The hospital is currently undergoing an expansion. The other hospitals in Mallorca, to varying degrees, have greater resources to manage the pressure on their healthcare systems.

The Eserp business school—the company is based in Palma and has been offering advanced vocational training cycles and master's degrees for over twenty years—also wants to offer university degrees as an affiliated center of the University of Vic (UVic). "We received word of their desire to expand their educational offerings in the Balearic Islands, and we became interested," explains Xisco Enseñat Bibiloni, the center's general manager, who hails from Mallorca. According to Enseñat, the project is still in its very early stages. "We want everything to go smoothly with the relevant authorities, because implementing university law requires consensus and extensive dialogue. We are in contact with all parties involved," he adds. The director emphasizes that the historical relationship with both the University of Vic and the UIB has always been very positive, based on institutional respect.