Antoni Costa: ‘Gaining efficiency and eliminating bureaucracy is one of the most powerful tools for attracting investment and achieving the economic transformation we need’.
In the processing as a bill, measures have been introduced such as a deduction for expenses arising from Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), or a deduction for housing or transport costs for positions of difficult and very difficult to cover, the National Police and Civil Guard.
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Parliament approves the first law on administrative simplification and rationalisation in the Balearic Islands
On Tuesday, the Parliament of the Balearic Islands approved the first law on administrative simplification and rationalisation of the public administrations of the Balearic Islands. The bill, which stems from the desire to increase efficiency in the Administration, modifies some fifty laws, contains more than 170 modifications to the articles, eliminates procedures that created duplicities, and introduces measures that affect all the ministries and administrations – island councils and town councils. The Vice-president and Minister of Economy, Finance and Innovation, Antoni Costa, said: ‘Always, from the triple perspective of simplifying regulations, simplifying procedures and digitalising the administration’.
‘The model of this Government is not an Administration with more than 6,000 procedures in execution. Nor is it one of having 13,000 subsidy files in Energy, 4,000 files in Water Resources and 2,000 files in Coasts that have not been processed. Nor is it to have files pending a response for four years. Citizens and companies deserve to receive a response in the shortest possible time. Because gaining efficiency and eliminating bureaucracy is one of the most powerful tools for attracting investment in the Balearic Islands, and at the same time achieving the economic transformation that we need,’ said Costa.
Main measures
Action has been taken on the two main bottlenecks in the Administration, with the abolition of the Balearic Islands Environment Commission ‘to prioritise the technical and guaranteeing nature of environmental assessment’, and the streamlining of files to the Directorate-General for Water Resources.
In energy transition, the administrative processes for priority energy projects are streamlined, and the threshold for self-consumption facilities that are exempt from prior administrative authorisation is increased.
In terms of education, exemptions are included in the payment of university enrolment fees linked to good academic results or the economic situation of the student, the right to free public transport in the baccalaureate is recognised, and supplements of difficult and very difficult coverage for teachers and professors in Menorca, Eivissa and Formentera are implemented, in addition to these supplements for the Foundation for Care and Support for Dependency and Promotion of Personal Autonomy in the case of Eivissa.
A single Social History is created, which integrates the information of the user of Social Services and the Health Service, facilitating the crossing of data and streamlining procedures. It also means that people diagnosed with a serious mental health illness do not have to prove their disability certificate to access certain aids and services.
In the case of mobility, the possibility for the island councils to outsource the Technical Vehicle Inspection (ITV) to reduce waiting lists, and the possibility of installing park-and-ride lots on rural land or any other type of land – for a maximum of 8 months per calendar year – to reduce vehicle congestion, stand out.
Measures introduced in the process
Some new measures have been introduced throughout the bill processing, especially fiscal ones. On the one hand, a deduction has been created for expenses derived from Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), with a limit of €3,500, in addition to the economic aid that this Government pioneered. In addition, the deduction for occupying jobs that are difficult or very difficult to fill in the Balearic Islands, of 40% of the expenses for the purchase, construction or rental of housing, or inter-island air and sea transport, is being introduced. The deduction is extended to members of the National Police and the Civil Guard stationed in the Balearic Islands.
The government will approve a decree law to guarantee the safety of citizens
Vice-president Costa has announced that, given the lack of agreement with the opposition to introduce modifications to the approved text to guarantee the prevention and safety of citizens in the event of risk, the government will approve ‘as soon as the text is published in the BOIB’, a decree law to prohibit the construction of new housing and sensitive public facilities in areas at risk, the prohibition of allowing new land to be developed in these areas, and the possibility that families living in unplanned housing located in flood zones and where urban planning legality can no longer be re-established can carry out works and actions for protection and safety in the event of adverse phenomena.
Furthermore, after concluding the debate, the vice-president announced that another decree law would be passed to reverse a series of modifications approved by mistake via amendment during the vote.