Lack of money to build all the roads of the agreement
Sebastián Franquis (c) with socialist deputies in a file photo. /
Franquis assures that in the last years of the current plan "it will be necessary to sit down" with the State and negotiate to guarantee the planned works
The Public Works CounselorSebastián Franquis, affirmed yesterday in the Parliament of the Canary Islands that it is "impossible" to carry out the 69 works planned in the annex to the current
road agreement with financing closed with the State for 10 years.
In response to a question from the spokesman for the Gomeran Socialist Association (ASG), Casimiro Curbelo, the councilor indicated that much has been said about the
debt of 407 million -already negotiated by the Government of the Canary Islands so that they are paid to the autonomous community and which represent 34% of the agreement-
But it's not the only problem. In this sense, he explained that one of the most important issues "is financing."
In this regard, he explained that
it is "impossible" to execute the 69 works included in the plan that extends from 2018 to 2027 with the 1,600 million -the initial 1,200 plus the 400 million that will be incorporated in the last two annuities-. The file to receive this last amount "is pending assembly" but it can be signed before the summer.
price increase
In your question,
Casimir Curbelo indicated that the
1,200 million consigned in the agreement are "insufficients even when the 407 million are incorporated” due to inflation and other circumstances that are generating cost overruns, and asked the counselor who will assume that higher cost of the works.
Franquis insisted that the debt of the 407 million unexecuted works is important but there are "other very difficult issues, such as the financing of the works included in the annex."
In his opinion, in the last years of the current plan,
“we will have to sit down” with the State and negotiate the following plan to guarantee "that the vast majority" of the current agreement is executed, as happened with the previous one, which required an addendum to incorporate works in execution of the previous plan, among them, the fourth phase of the Las Palms of Gran Canaria.
In this regard, the Vice President of the Government and Minister of the Treasury, Román Rodríguez, already indicated last week that with the funds currently consigned
only half of the works can be covered.
Good news
In addition, the Minister of Public Works was "surprised" that, after announcing the
unblocking with the Ministry of Finance of the 407 million "this good news has bothered some people".
Franquis has reiterated that in the Canary Islands there has been a lot of talk about roads "but no roads have been built." And in this sense, the vice president, Román Rodríguez, also spoke yesterday in an appearance requested by Nueva Canarias.
In his speech, Rodríguez indicated that, if all the planned funds had been made available at this time, it would have had to be "renegotiated" with the State because the current Government only found
“four projects in the drawer”. So far this mandate has commissioned 28 projects that will be tendered for some 800 million.
Sentences
Likewise, in the control session the Government was asked about the funds related to the road agreement derived from the Supreme Court rulings, the president,
Angel Victor Torreswho indicated that a "historic problem" had been resolved.
He indicated that of the 1,000 million that the State owed to the Canary Islands, the 407 million will be included in
an addendum of the joint monitoring commission of the road agreement, which «never managed to introduce before». Of the remaining 500, he noted that 100 million will arrive in 2021, 200 million will arrive this year and 238 million in fiscal 2023.
For his part, the deputy of the Canarian Coalition,
Paul Rodriguez indicated in his question that at the moment, the only thing the Government of the Canary Islands has is an announcement "with fanfare and joy", because
the agreement “has not yet been published” in the Official Gazette. He recalled that these resources have been achieved after the actions undertaken by a Canarian Coalition Government before the Supreme Court.
The Government maintains its commitment to access to housing
The Minister of Public Works and Housing, Sebatián Franquis, assured yesterday in Parliament that the 7,400 families awarded the first and second housing plans will be able to access the property of their house, as the Executive had promised. This decision was included in the housing pact, agreed with all parliamentary forces, and later in the Housing Plan. This process, affirmed the counselor in response to a question from the socialist deputy Teresa Cruz, "has nothing to do" with the Housing bill that is being debated in Congress. Cruz became interested in this matter due to the "doubts planted" by CC "which has deceived the families", who in many cases have already paid the amortization price. In this regard, Franquis pointed out that the Government is preparing a decree that will respond to this commitment, given a situation that has lasted for many years, and that the draft, he said, is already in the transparency portal.
