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Spain: Regulations dedicated specifically to campsites in the Canary Islands have moved a step closer after the archipelago’s government announced that its draft of newly proposed legislation had entered a public consultation phase.
The public consultation phase is considered to be a vital stage in the legislative process for gathering the opinions of citizens and organisations on the proposed new law in the Canary Islands.
Fifteen years ago, a reference to campsites was removed from Law 7/1995 on the Organisation of Tourism in the Canary Islands, meaning that the regional camping sector there has been able to operate without minimum regulations. Authorities believe that this lack of regulation has resulted in more incidents of unauthorised camping across the archipelago, which is having a detrimental effect on the Canary Islands’ popular outdoor vacation segment – a crucial tourism revenue source for the islands.
Jessica de León, the regional Minister of Tourism and Employment, says that clear rules are needed to consolidate the sector and ensure that it is growing sustainably and legally in order to help emerging entrepreneurs in the camping sector in the Canary Islands.
The Regional Government of the Canary Islands [CAN-REG] is proposing an initiative that aims to balance all interests, from environmental protection to safeguarding users of tourism services, promoting entrepreneurship on the islands, stable employment, competitiveness and diversification of tourism offerings.
The public consultation phase began on 12 July and will conclude on 31 July. The consultation, which can be accessed at the Transparency Portal, includes questions relating to issues that the initiative would solve, the necessity of the legislation, and potential alternative solutions to the proposals.
It comes as the Canary Islands, as well as other Spanish islands and mainland Spain, are preparing to tighten legislation on illegal short-term rentals this year and combat what local authorities deem as mass tourism.
A draft law is being prepared across the archipelago of seven islands which would ban new-build properties from the short-term rental market, while property owners with a permit will have five years to comply with the new rules, which also include obtaining authorisation from neighbours to rent out.
de Leon previously told Reuters that the government would “empower” the police [35 inspectors across the islands] to act when fraudulent behaviour is detected in homes, and added that the plan could eventually involve recruiting 1,300 people to work on the enforcement of the legislation.
The frustration from local governments has been amplified by activists on the island of Tenerife, some of whom have gone on hunger strike, to protest against mass tourism and environmental concerns. Members of the Canarias Se Agota movement, or The Canaries Have Had Enough, are calling for construction of a hotel and beach resort in the south of the island to end, and they say that the high numbers of tourists that come to Tenerife are driving up housing prices for locals.
According to figures released by the local chamber of commerce, 13.9 million tourists visited the Canary Islands last year – a 13 per cent uptick on the previous year – despite the population of the islands combined accounting to 2.2 million people. In the meantime, the National Statistics Institute [INE] claims that 34 per cent of Canary Islands inhabitants face the risk of social exclusion or poverty, leading to escalating concerns over tourism levels.
The sentiment around mass tourism is being echoed across more cities in Spain, including Malaga, Madrid and Barcelona. In particular, the government in the latter wants to implement a holiday rental ban in the city by late 2028.
