ANTICH SAYS MORE PEOPLE, MORE MONEY

PALMA
THE proposal for a new financial model which the Balearic Government will present next week to the Spanish Government has, as its basic calculation criteria, the actual population.

However, it also establishes what it considers to be the “floating population”, according to Francesc Antich, leader of the Balearic Government.
During an interview to mark his first 100 days in office, Antich said that the proposal points out the “great increase in population which the Balearic Islands have had”.

It also lists the services which the public administrations give to the millions of tourists who come the the islands every year. These tourists are the ones who form the “floating population”.

Antich underlined that the revision of the financial model was essential as the Balearics is the region which is “most prejudiced” by the existing financial system. “This is a great battle for us” to improve the situation for the region's coffers, said the leader of the Government, who also repeated his intention to work so that “the Special Regime Law which is currently in existence is accomplished” via the modification planned in the last reform of the Statute.

Antich also referred to the agreement in which the central Spanish Government promised to invest 2'800 million euros in the Balearics during the next seven years.

He highlighted that, of this amount, it is guaranteed that the money which is not used during the period in question will be carried forward to the next period. “The Partido Popular (PP) had said that 2'500 million euros would be the amount and this agreement means that the deal is done. “During the last seven years some 1'700 million euros should have come to this region, but only 80 percent of it has arrived”, said Antich.
He added that the agreement with the Spanish Government also plans on “seeking a formula” to finance the debt which this Balearic Government has inherited from the previous one.

In addition to this, Antich highlighted the fact that the Balearic Government has cancelled 100 million euros worth of investments scheduled for 2008. However, he repeated that during the next few years the region will have these funds.