The president of Foment del Treball, Josep Sánchez Llibre, called this Tuesday from Madrid for a strong Government to “lead economic policy in Spain.” The president referred to the Catalan elections at the opening of the dialogue The future of tourism in Portuguese cities, organized by the Barcelona Society of Economic and Social Studies (SBEES) of Foment, stating that “Catalonia needs a strong government, a government with a clear project, capable of leading economic policy in Spain and at the same time projecting a Catalonia on a global level.”
Sanchez Llibre has asked in this forum in Madrid for “a government that will make life easier for companies.” The president affirmed that the Parliament cannot be blocked with debates that have largely been superseded. “It is time to raise your sights, to put your headlights on and start working with a lot of will on your part,” he concluded in reference to the future Government of the Generalitat.
For his part, the Minister of Industry and Tourism, Jordi Hereu, inaugurated the event by defending that Catalonia must open up more to intercontinental connections to attract international tourism. Hereu has not expressly mentioned it but he refers to the opposition in sectors of Catalan society to the expansion of the Barcelona-El Prat Airport. “Some battles in the land where I come from must understand this, that we need people who come from other continents,” he said.
The number of tourists who come to Spain “is what worries me the least,” said Hereu, who believes that the battle must be fought for quality and for greater added value per visitor per day, “and that requires connectivity intercontinental”.
The table has been attended by the mayor of Madrid, José Luis Martínez-Almeida; the mayor of Malaga, Francisco de la Torre, and the presidents of the Municipal Chamber of Porto, Rui de Carvalho de Araújo; Municipal Chamber of Cascais, Carlos Carreiras; of Turisme de Barcelona and Gremi d’Hotels de Barcelona, ??Jordi Clos, and of Confederation of Business Associations of the Balearic Islands (CAEB), Carmen Planas.
Almeida has defended the need to reconcile two issues: on the one hand, the enhancement of tourism as an element of promotion of cities and as a driver of growth and prosperity, and on the other hand, the maintenance of the city’s way of life, where it has that prioritize quality of life. The mayor has considered that both are compatible: “Madrid has to be the best city to live in, because then it will be the best city to come to.”
In this sense, the mayor of Madrid has stressed that it is necessary to “guarantee coexistence” between both activities. “A good part of Madrid’s current situation is thanks to tourism, its image outside of Spain. The phenomenon of tourism must be addressed from an economic and social point of view, but citizens have to be happy to live in one of the best cities in the world,” he noted.
Clós, for his part, has elaborated on the need for cities “as spectacular and complementary” as Madrid and Barcelona “to go hand in hand and not compete with distant destinations like Asia or the US.” “All cities compete to hold an event or a convention, but for tourists who come from so far away, the distance between Madrid and Barcelona is ridiculous and the joint offer is unbeatable,” he said.
“It is difficult to achieve but once this project is consolidated, it can be expanded with more complementary cities,” he stated.
