The British government does not put a but nor any objection to the new decree for responsible tourism’ approved last week by the Balearic Government. A decree that, among other aspects, involves the prohibition of the consumption of alcoholic beverages on public roads in the areas affected by this Decree -such as the West End area of Sant Antoni de Portmany- except if the consumption takes place in terraces or legally authorized areas. Penalties include fines of between 500 and 1,500 euros.
“We respect the rules that are approved. We are guests on this island, and we understand that they want tourists to have a decent and responsible behavior,” said yesterday the UK ambassador to Spain, Hugh Eliot, after a meeting with the president of the Consell de Ibiza, Vicent Marí, and representatives of the five municipalities of the island.
“There must be a coexistence between tourists and locals. You can not cause damage or inappropriate behavior. Therefore, these new rules seem perfectly logical to me. It’s all about understanding and collaboration,” Eliot summed up.
Image of the meeting, which took place at the Consell headquarters. | VICENT MARÍ / david ventura
Information campaigns
The British ambassador also explained that they will maintain the informative policies aimed at tourists, especially the youngest, to avoid risky behavior and illegal businesses, such as unregulated tourist rentals or pirate cabs. They also maintain the ‘Stick with your friends’ campaign, which in 2019 caused a controversy because it was considered to stigmatize some tourist destinations.
“We have found that in 70% of cases, when a mishap occurs, the victim is a young person who had gone out with his group of friends but is left alone and something happens to him. So the message is clear, ‘Stick with your mates [Mantente cerca de tus colegas]”.
In these campaigns, the British government relies on the collaboration of tour operators, distributes informative leaflets and has also recruited well-known facessuch as influencers and DJs, to send the messages through social networks: “Many of the recipients of these campaigns are teenagers. If we tell politicians, I don’t think they’ll listen to us,” he joked.
A support to the Govern’s decree that was also reiterated by the president of the Consell, who highlighted the change of nomenclature of the norm: “Before there was talk of ‘tourism of excesses’, which is an aggressive expression, and now there is talk of ‘responsible tourism’, that seems to me a more positive message“.
Marí also stressed the importance of maintaining a fluid relationship and good contacts with the British authorities, since it is the “main tourist market of the island”. In this meeting, the Consell explained to the British representatives the parliamentary initiative on the regulation of the entry of vehicles, as well as the fight of the administrations against illegal tourist rental: “Warn those who visit us to make reservations in regulated establishments. Intrusiveness generates insecurity“.