PP says Balearics has become a tourism “laughing” stock

The Balearic opposition Partido Popular said last night that as soon as the party returns to power, it will scrap the tourist tax. The PP took another swipe at the government over its failure to have reached a deal yesterday. Leader of the opposition, José María González Ortea who was branded a “Nazi” in parliament on Tuesday, said that the Balearic president has “failed.” Ortea said that Antich has managed to transform the Balearics from a leading European tourist destination into “the laughing stock of the tourist industry.” Ortea, a former Balearic Minister for Tourism, said that the conflict and in-fighting between the hoteliers, tour operators and the government over the tax has caused a lot of damage to the Balearics' image and will take a long time to repair. Ortea said that the PP has been against the tax from day one because it is “unfair and badly designed.” Applying the tax is playing with our livelihood” and the Balearic economy. “We stand to lose everything,” Ortea added. But the PSM Majorcan Nationalist Party urged Antich not to back down, warning him that delaying the tax will be a “historic mistake.” The PSM called on both Alomar and Antich to apply the tax as quickly as possible. “Don't be afraid to apply the tax.” The government has been warned by left wing coalition parties that turning back on the tax will be interpreted as a sign of weakness in the government by the electorate, the majority of which, according to Balearic Minister for the Environment, Margalida Rossello, support the tourist tax. But that is not the issue. Few oppose the tax in principle and its aims, the stumbling block is that one third of tourists visiting the Balearics, as well as residents, will pay it.