Balearic President blames opposition for National Budget's unfairness to Islands

Bauza was speaking yesterday at a meeting of the Balearic Parliament in which Majorcan Socialist coalition spokesman Biel Barceló had accused the President of showing deference to Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy. Criticism also came yesterday for Bauzá from Socialist leader Francina Armengol who had accused him of being incompetent and said that the President should have done more during the summer months to secure a better deal for the Balearics in the National Budget for next year. “You were in power and part of the State budget for 2013, whether you want to hear it or not, has been set at a low level for the Balearics because of the huge public debt which you, and the the previous Socialist government in Madrid left behind you.” “From the beginning” Bauzá pointed out to both Barceló and Armengol that from the very first day he became aware of the State budget for 2013, he had publicly declared that they were “unjust” for the Islands and had straight away begun to negotiate to have the figures modified more favourably.

Bauzá said that it was therefore a bit “premature” for criticism to be made about his lack of action.
The President claimed that in the 15 months his Partido Popular had been in power, the public deficit had dropped from being 2.51 percent of the Gross Regional Product (PIB) in the first half of 2011 to just 0.4 percent in the same period this year. He highlighted the fact that the number of public companies had been reduced from 175 to 137 and that it is hoped this number will decline still further to 75 by the end of the year.

The Balearic government he said, is well on track to pay off its goods and services suppliers.