Rob Horgan
A FIERCELY-FOUGHT illegal property amnesty in the Balearics could be overturned because of the voting chamber’s choice of decor.
The landmark amnesty of 20,000 illegal properties was voted in despite opposition from ecological groups and the national government.
However, the opposition has now spotted a loophole – the voting chamber did not have the official portrait of King Felipe VI on the wall, just an old one of Juan Carlos.
Felipe had taken the throne just days before and a new law had been passed ordering all schools, courts, parliaments and places of official business to display his official portrait.
The Balearics had apparently not received the memo and the old portrait was hanging on the wall.
Opposition to the amnesty – which legalises any residential property where the violation of the building law occurred before 2006 – have now lodged an appeal to have the Constitutional Court overturn the vote.
According to constitutional experts, this could be a sufficient slip-up to have all votes passed in the chamber during this period annulled.
Which would prove that the law really is an ass.
Think this is clutching at straws and should be thrown out as unfortunate but tough!
Why would anyone want to overturn this amnesty and what do they think it will achieve? What are the alternatives for these 20,000 properties, demolition and yet more bad publicity? Surely it would be far more politic to just legalise them and then make sure the law is properly enforced thereafter. What a pathetic state of affairs.
“The Balearics had apparently not received the memo and the old portrait was hanging on the wall.”
Yes, must have been difficult for them not to know there was a new King on the throne of Spain lol.
Same old, same old. Eso es Espana.
Same old, otro dia. I wonder WHO have vested interests in those properties? A realdemocratic, transparent government would investigate that. Any wonder why there is lack of confidence in/ of Spanish property purchases??
Note – look at the Caveats of foreign Buyers’