RURAL building fell to a historic minimum in 2006, with a total of just 254 authorisations to build houses on rural land in the countryside.
Only in 1995 was the figure less, with 207 authorisations, although it must be borne in mind that at that time many private buildings were put up without permission being sought.
The number of permits given last year is very much below those given in the year 2000 because, in 1999, the previous Balearic Goverment was elected and so, amid the fear that they would put new restrictions of rural building, the applications for building permits shot up in spectacular fashion, going from 466 in 1998 to more than 1'200 in 1999. This caused a record number of permits to be granted in 2000, the year in which the Council of Majorca granted 810 rural building permits. In spite of not taking any exceptional measures to stop the construction of villas, a few years ago the minimum amount of land required to build on rural land went from 7'000 to 14'000 square metres.
With the fear of new restrictions gone, from the historic high of 2000, applications (and therefore authorisations) started to decrease progressively to the 254 permits granted last year.
Comparison between the last two Balearic Governments clarifies this. During the period from 1999 to 2002, a total of 3'300 applications were made to construct on rural land. All those who met the requirements (2'536) were granted a licence from the Council of Majorca. During the period from 2003 to 2006, there were 1'556 applications and the Council of Majorca granted 1'288. This means that the licences for rural building have nearly halved during the present Government's term.
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