Balearics unlock nearly €4,000m for investment

The Balearic Islands can use their 2025 budget surplus for sustainable investments in 2026 and 2027 after Spain’s Congress approved a decree on Wednesday in Madrid. The islands are one of eight autonomous regions covered by measures expected to mobilise nearly €4,000 million. The package is chiefly aimed at La Palma, where the 2021 Cumbre Vieja volcanic eruption caused damage.

Vox and Junts were the only parties to vote against the decree. Esquerra Republicana, two Compromís deputies and a former Vox deputy abstained, while the rest of the chamber backed it.

The decree had already taken effect when the Council of Ministers approved it on 8 September. Congress had 30 days to endorse or repeal it.

For La Palma, the Canary Islands government can use €100 million from its 2025 surplus to support people and organisations affected by the eruption. Residents of the island will also keep a 60% income-tax deduction through the 2026 tax year.

The new rules allow the Balearics, Asturias, the Canary Islands, Navarre, the Basque Country, Andalusia, Cantabria and Galicia to put 2025 surpluses into sustainable investments, including housing policies.

Regions whose debt stood below 12.4% of gross domestic product at the end of 2025 can also use surpluses from earlier years for investments in 2026, 2027 and 2028. Those projects will not count towards the spending rule, but must still meet budget-stability and public-debt targets.

Topics: Politics · Economy · Palma

Source: Europa Press / Mallorca.com