AHETA calls for the creation of a Ministry of Tourism, a “fiscal revolution” and a clampdown on bureaucracy
The Algarve Hoteliers Association (AHETA) has written an open letter to the future prime minister of Portugal, listing some of the region’s main issues which it believes need to be addressed by the country’s next government.
The letter is divided into five main topics: the creation of a Ministry of Tourism; the need for a “fiscal revolution”; bureaucracy; public infrastructure; and the region’s events policy.
Headlining the list is the association’s plea for the creation of a Ministry of Tourism, given that the tourism sector has been the “main economic activity boosting the national GDP”.
“It’s incomprehensible how this sector does not have a minister, while other sectors which have a residual impact have their own minister,” the association states, lamenting that the tourism sector is not represented in the Council of Ministers. AHETA also calls for changes to the financing of the regional tourism board (RTA), which it stresses still receives the same amount of funding it did 20 years ago.
Second on the list is the association’s call for a “fiscal revolution” to ease the tax burden on Portuguese companies and families. “If we want to give a salary increase of €150 a month, the worker will only receive €60, with the State receiving the remainder,” AHETA lamented.
The association also says it is “unacceptable” that there are over 4,300 “different taxes” in the country, defending that a “simplification of the tax system” is “imperative”. AHETA says that the government simply needs to “look at how other countries have worked to retain workers and companies. It is not a crime to copy what is successful,” the hoteliers state.
Other matters, such as the implementation of a “housing subsidy for displaced workers”, are also highlighted by AHETA, as well as the need for a new type of contract to reduce employee turnover at hotels and resorts in the Algarve. “This way the worker has a permanent link to the company and, whenever the hotel closes, the costs are shared between the government and companies. This avoids bureaucratic processes related to unemployment subsidies and constant changes of jobs,” the association says.
Bureaucracy is indeed the third issue underlined by AHETA in its open letter, with the hoteliers describing it as “one of the biggest cancers” for companies and citizens. As an example, the association says that the average waiting time for the approval of a hotel unit is seven years.
AHETA would also like to see a future government have the “courage” to put an end to the whole burden surrounding the revision of PDMs (municipal master plans), which in some cases have been ongoing for over 10 years, and carrying out a “global study that takes into account the future needs of the region in terms of retaining companies and families.”
The main issues with these PDM procedures are the restrictions that they impose, the hoteliers say, defending that there aren’t enough areas available for the construction of housing for workers.
“We want to build social housing for our staff, but it won’t be possible with plots of land at market prices, or the tax systems involved,” the hoteliers say, adding that they even welcome the imposition to use the constructed properties solely for staff housing for at least 50 years.
AHETA also sounds the alarm on the “proliferation of wooden houses or containers”, which are spreading across the region, causing “serious urbanistic problems which will take decades to resolve”. As the association points out, this creates a feeling of “injustice” among those who take years gathering the required conditions to build legally, while these “temporary” lodgings are set up “from one day to the next”.
The open letter focuses next on the state of the region’s public infrastructures, which, in AHETA’s opinion, are in dire need of improvement.
“A tourism destination of excellence must present an appealing image to those who visit us. The state of the EN125 road, between Olhão and Vila Real de Santo António, is more akin to a third-world country road,” the association laments.
It adds that the region’s A22 motorway is plagued by “terrible tolls, especially for companies and tourists”, while the region’s railway is described as “insufficient”, with its electrification works still incomplete and its “decades-old carriages” which are “decorated by graffiti”.
Also criticised is the “weak contribution” of Portugal’s flagship carrier, TAP, to the region.
“Given that more and more financial contributions have been needed to ensure the survival of the company, which the Algarvians have been called to pay, it is only fair that TAP should serve the Algarve, which it does not today,” the association headed by Hélder Martins states.
Another pressing issue mentioned by AHETA is the worsening drought in the Algarve, for which there has been a lack of measures in the last 20 years, leaving the region unprepared for a worst-case scenario.
Finally, AHETA stresses the importance of creating an events policy that allows the region to consistently attract top-class events.
“Given that the Algarve has a fabulous coast, why don’t we have an events policy that attracts a big sailing event of international scope? And why can’t we have a top-level international golf event that promotes such an important economic activity? And why are we, year after year, counting pennies to continue hosting events at the Algarve International Racetrack, such as MotoGP, which this year will once more have a huge impact on hotels and restaurants practically across the entire Algarve?” the association questions.
“Aside from the Volta ao Algarve cycling competition, what else is there in the Algarve to help strengthen the destination’s image and reduce seasonality? The Monte Gordo Sand Experience was an excellent experience last year which will certainly return to the region, but unfortunately there are few cases,” it said.
AHETA concluded: “We have to create a true events policy, in a sustainable way, with events organised mostly outside the tourism high season and which are guaranteed to be held regularly for a certain period of time.”
