Més, one of the three parties that form the coalition administration at Palma town hall, believe that the agreement signed on Thursday to limit the number of cruise ships in Palma is "insufficient".
The agreement between the Balearic government and the CLIA Cruise Lines International Association places a limit of three cruise ships per day, one of which can be a ship of 5,000 or more passengers. Bearing this in mind, the agreement allows for up to 8,000 passengers per day.
The Més councillor for the model of the city and likely candidate for mayor at the municipal election in May 2023, Neus Truyol, insists that these are too many. Her party has therefore sent a letter to the national minister for tourism, Reyes Maroto, requesting a limit of two ships per day and no more than 5,000 passengers in total.
Truyol is also of the view that the agreement may not be complied with, as it is "voluntary". The numbers to be allowed, she argues, are similar to those when there was "saturation" of cruise passengers in the city prior to the pandemic.
Although the Balearic government is a signatory to the agreement, the Spanish government has ultimate responsibility - this is because Palma is a state port. The secretary of state for tourism, Fernando Valdés, was present at the signing on Thursday.
Truyol suggests that it is Madrid who have set the limit, adding that if the Spanish government "doesn't wish to propose a greater limit, it should give authority to the Balearic government and Palma town hall to be able to do so". "It seems that nothing has been learned from the pandemic. More restrictions need to be exercised."
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