The Popular Party of Ibiza has accused the PSOE of using in a “wrong and deliberately confusing” way the data of the National Institute of Statistics on tourism, while defending the reduction of human pressure in high season as proof of the success of its management. The controversy arises from PSOE statements denouncing an alleged increase in irregular tourist accommodation on the island during 2025.
PSOE denounces an increase of tourists in illegal dwellings
The Socialist Group of the Consell Insular assured this Wednesday that the number of tourists staying in unregulated housing in 2025 amounted to 478,159 people, 3.4% more than in 2024, which, in its opinion, shows that the Consell “has not reduced the illegal offer” as it had announced. According to the PSOE, the expenditure associated with these visitors reached 550 million euros, 12% of the total tourist business of the island.
The opposition accuses the island president, Vicent Marí, of “selling smoke” and criticizes the lack of effective results in the fight against tourist intrusion. The socialist spokeswoman, Elena López Bonet, described as “propaganda” the messages of the government team on the alleged elimination of 14,500 irregular places.
“They wanted us to believe that they were dismantling the illegal supply, when the reality is exactly the opposite,” said López Bonet.
PP: “Not everything that is not rented is illegal”.
The response of the Popular Party has not been long in coming. In a press release, the party dismantles the PSOE’s story and assures that the INE figures are being intentionally misinterpreted.
The Popular Party warns that the category of “non-market lodging” -on which the Socialists base their argument- includes stays in homes owned by the owners, family or friends, among other non-commercial formulas, many of which are perfectly legal. Therefore, they say, it cannot be automatically equated to illegal tourism.
“To use that category as a synonym for illegal supply is false. It is deliberately misleading the public,” the PP points out.
In addition, they remind that FRONTUR does not collect data on national tourists, nor does it evaluate the legality of the accommodations, and that the key indicator to measure the real pressure on the island is the Human Pressure Index, provided by IBESTAT, which -they assure- confirms a drop in 2025, coinciding with the withdrawal of illegal supply.
“If the PSOE is right, the whole of Spain would collapse”.
The PP argues that the INE itself demonstrates the inconsistency of the socialist discourse: the “non-market accommodation” grew in all of Spain by 7.5% in 2025, and yet no one has spoken of an upturn in illegal tourism at the national level. “If the PSOE’s argument were true, it would have to be concluded that intrusiveness has soared throughout the country, something absurd,” the Populars stress.
The Popular Party has defended its strategy as a way of balancing the market and guaranteeing coexistence, with less impact on public services, roads and water resources. “The fight against intrusiveness is not measured with surveys, but with facts: withdrawn ads, canceled reservations and fall of irregular places,” concludes the statement.
