The Popular Party of the Balearic Islands has publicly acknowledged the mistake made this Tuesday at the Parliamentwhere its deputies approved by mistake a block of amendments presented by Vox. These measures included the elimination of the requirement of Catalan in the Civil Service and in the education system, as well as the authorization to build in Natural Areas of Special Interest (ANEI). The PP spokesman in the Parliament, Sebastià Sagreras, has regretted what happened and has assured that it will have no legal impact, since the Government will approve a decree law rectifying the votes before the measures come into force. According to Sagreras, “the text voted yesterday is not in force until it is published in the BOIB”, which leaves room for correction.
Commitment to rectification
From the Govern, Vice President Antoni Costa has reaffirmed that the decree law will be a priority to correct any possible impact derived from this mistake. “The PP is a party that, when it makes a mistake, recognizes it, apologizes and corrects,” said Sagreras, highlighting the importance of the Administrative Simplification Law, which was approved in the same plenary session. However, the spokesman admitted that the approval of this law, key to reduce bureaucracy in the Balearic Islands, was tarnished by the mistake in the vote.
The opposition charges against the PP
The opposition did not take long to react. Representatives of the PSIB, Més per Mallorca and Podemos have described what happened as a “legislative catastrophe”. The spokesman for Més, Lluís Apesteguia, has been especially critical, pointing out that what happened shows a lack of coordination within the ruling party. “It is an unprecedented legal mess in our community,” he said. The opposition parties have requested an urgent meeting with the president of the Govern, Marga Prohens, to address what happened and demand explanations. In addition to correcting the amendments approved in error, the Govern has announced the approval of an additional decree law that will prohibit construction in risk areas and allow action to be taken in dwellings out of planning to improve their safety.
