Benidorm admits debt

BENIDORM’S debt mountain has by its nature incurred additional payments for costs, litigation or administrative errors.

Now things have gone one stage further when last week the local government formally recognized that they have to pay interest on previous interest to the company Alfonso Benitez, SA, a subsidiary of FCC who were contracted to manage and clean the beaches for the period up until 2008, when the town was governed by the now opposition PP.

In a resolution of 15 February Mayor Agustin Navarro recognized a bill of €80,617 from November 2005, and other expenses of €255,844.11 relating to “default interest for late payment of the bill claimed ” and, “interest on the sum of the above amounts above, accrued up to 2009 (two days after the vote of no confidence that led to the incumbent PSOE coming to power) and to now, in the amount of €32,226.

However it is one thing to acknowledge a debt but “another when you can pay,” said Councillor for Finance, Natalia Guijarro.

The local coffers can barely cope with the expenses necessary to maintain the it’s day to day activities, as previously reported in EWN.

In 2011 Benidorm had to face payments of approximately three million euros relating to other legal claims, for modified works or towards pending certifications for debts due, including interest on arrears.

This amount bizarrely (the council billed it, and the company paid) included the return of almost €100,000 to a company from whom the council had in error collected rates twice over for the same period.

The municipal debt recognized by Benidorm’s ruling PSOE is €145 million, as opposed to the PP’s assertion of €170 million.

Photo credit: leumas_1974
By Paul Deed 

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