Balearic debt tops 8,100 million euros as bills lag
Mallorca, Spain: Vox puts the Balearic government's long-term debt at more than 8,100 million euros, but finance chief Antoni Costa says it can pay its bills. Vox deputy Patricia de las Heras raised the figure as Costa appeared before the Balearic Parliament's Finance and Budget Committee in Palma on Tuesday, 3 November, to discuss the 2025 accounts. She also warned that interest payments are rising.
Costa says the money is there
Costa said the government has no shortage of cash and that its debt has fallen each year since the current parliamentary term began. He expects the Balearics to avoid a deficit, or record a surplus, in both 2026 and 2027.
Opposition Socialist Llorenç Pou challenged that picture. He said the Balearics take longer on average to pay suppliers than any other Spanish region. Costa blamed delays at the Balearic Health Service, IbSalut, on budget management and contracts rather than a lack of money. He said special arrangements had been set up to pay outstanding invoices.
Housing spending raises another concern
Lluís Apesteguia of MÉS per Mallorca said the housing, territory and transport department had spent only 60% of its budget. He also warned that the property market supplies one in every eight euros of Balearic government revenue, leaving income exposed if the market falters.
Costa acknowledged that property purchases by non-residents bring in significant tax revenue, which he said funds services for residents. But he warned that a crisis like the one in 2010 could make that income harder to collect.
Source: Europa Press / Mallorca.com