The UK consul in Catalonia, Lloyd Milen, met at the World Travel Market (WTM) international tourism fair in London with the president of the Consell d'Eivissa, Vicent Marí, and the mayor of Sant Josep, Vicent Roig, to discuss the evolution of the British market in Ibiza. In this regard, when asked before the meeting about the increase in the eco-tax that will affect tourists staying in tourist establishments during the high season, Lloyd Milen stressed that this increase is a political measure of the Balearic Islands. ‘The islands can decide to increase taxes and impose a tax increase. A few cents more in the tourist tax will not change the British tourist's idea of spending their holidays in the Balearics,’ added the UK Consul in Catalonia. He also welcomed the ‘transparency’ of public investment in the different projects financed by the eco-tax, which will be focused on improving the environment and caring for the environment.
‘This transparency is always positive,’ said Milen. It should be noted that the Minister of Tourism of the Balearic Government, Jaume Bauzà, stressed to the British and national media that visitors will find in their tourist accommodation all the information related to investments through the eco-tax because, as he said, tourists with their contributions are part of the transformation in the model of tourism and sustainable development that seeks to improve the quality of life of residents and tourists. He indicated that, thanks to these contributions, the Balearic Government will be able to allocate part of the proceeds to the environment and the water cycle, as well as to finance projects to help restore heritage and improve infrastructures. He also added that this tax will be lowered in the months of December, January and February in order to help to deseasonalise and mitigate the tourist saturation suffered by the Balearic Islands. Along these lines, he stressed that British tourism has grown by 5% in the Islands and most of this increase has been concentrated in the mid-season months.
Overcrowding
For his part, Vicent Marí stated that the eco-tax is a consolidated tax in the Islands and indicated that it is important for tourists to be able to see the benefits of these investments in the Balearics. ‘With the payment of this tax, the environment and infrastructures are improved and, in addition, with the transparency in informing visitors, their contribution and participation is compensated in some way. Our aim is that they can find out what projects the money is being used for,’ said the president of the Consell d'Eivissa, stressing that one of the aims of the Sustainable Tourism Tax (ITS) is to reduce the ecological footprint left by mass tourism.
In relation to the limits on mass tourism by the Balearic government, the UK consul in Catalonia added that it is a Balearic policy and that the autonomous government is ‘free to establish the necessary measures to manage tourism because it is the Islands’ regulations’.
He also spoke about the forecasts for the British market for next year and indicated that they are good for the coming season. ‘This year we have seen a drop in the number of British tourists coming to the Islands, but it is true that these visitors are spending more; there is a change in the profile of British tourism,’ added Lloyd Milen, highlighting the interest of the British media in the Balearics at this WTM. In the same vein, he insisted that the forecast is very positive, taking into account the information he had previously received from tour operators. He also praised the measures implemented in the Balearic Islands to prevent binge tourism, highlighting the change in the tourism model. ‘This transformation is the work of the entire tourism sector,’ Milen acknowledged before the meeting.