The spokesperson for the Government of the Canary Islands and Vice-Minister of the Presidency, Alfonso Cabello, defended yesterday the agreement reached with several hotel developers on the islands to comply with court rulings issued due to various moratoriums approved between 2001 and 2009, aiming for the lowest possible cost to public funds.
Cabello indicated after the Government council meeting that managing the consequences of these moratoriums has resulted in a payment agreement for less than 500 million euros, compared to the 900 million requested for lost profits from unrealized projects.
Regarding the agreement's counter-condition, which involves not reclassifying the plots as rustic and thus allowing their development, Cabello rejected that this goes against the Executive's stance on containing the islands' tourism growth. He pointed out that if the plots had been reverted to rustic land, the cost to public funds for compensation would have exceeded 1 billion euros.
The Vice-Minister recalled that the current Land Law allows municipalities to decide whether or not to develop these plots for tourism. "None of these plots, nor others not affected by the moratorium, will be able to become tourist-oriented if the municipality does not wish it," he stated.
In light of what happened with the regulations from 2001, 2003, and 2009 that led to these compensations, Cabello justified that the current Government of the Canary Islands has not pursued another moratorium, considering the Land Law a more powerful instrument for declassifying land without the risks associated with moratoriums.
Finally, he noted that moratoriums are "effective" in the moment but later have consequences, such as the nearly 500 million euros that Canarians must pay in compensation.
