Jason Moore11/04/2017 00:00
TW
3

If we are not careful, soon there could be a shortage of police, government workers and even hotel staff. We may have a record number of tourists coming to our shores but there may be a shortage of personnel. The problem is that rents are now so high that seasonal staff can’t afford to come to the island. Majorca has quite simply priced itself out of the market and unless the issue of housing is tackled soon we could have a crisis on our hands.

Every year hundreds of police officers come to the Balearics from the mainland to help bolster the local force to deal with the influx of tourists. But many police officers are rejecting the opportunity of spending the summer on Spain’s favourite holiday isle because they can’t afford the rents. Hotel staff are in the same boat. The Balearic government is under pressure to solve the housing problem but there is simply no easy fix.

I am told that in Ibiza the problem is even more pronounced. It is quite amazing some of the rents which are being demanded in some parts of the island, especially in the tourist resorts and central Palma. The high rents also mean that young people are unable to leave home simply because they can’t afford it. Perhaps the local authorities need to enforce some form of rental control so there is enough housing to go around. Also, it wouldn’t hurt local hotels to offer discounted holiday accommodation for police officers, public sector workers and even their own staff, because without them Majorca is lost.