The aid will be approved this Wednesday, after Alicante City Council President Carlos Mazón announced on February 20 that he is launching a new consumer bonus campaign that will distribute 20m euros among provincial municipalities. At the general assembly meeting to be held by the provincial institution in May, eyes are already on the municipal and regional elections to be held on the 28th, in a session expected to last shorter than normal.
Sources from the Provincial Assembly government team point out that we will have to wait until this plenary meeting in May, as a report from the Generalitat to greenlight aid is lacking. While commercial bonds were approved at the county agency this Wednesday, it will now be up to the municipalities to approve the foundations for the campaign to operate in each of the municipalities that adhere to it. This fact added to the fact that elections are just around the corner and restrictions. Election Law, which prevents extremism with election announcements, This leads to the delay of the launch of the consumer coupon campaign until after 28A. In fact, there are already councils investigating whether aid should be circulated in July, which coincides with the summer discounts, or whether it should be delayed until September, with the start of the school year.
Reception
Diputación celebrates that the initiative has received an outstanding reception as there are 129 municipalities requesting bonds and 20 million will therefore be distributed. For example, in the case of the city of Alicante, 1.5 million will be taken. 1.2 million Euros will go to Elche and Benidorm will receive 650 thousand Euros. There are only fifteen municipalities that do not seek assistance, all of which correspond to centers with small populations, since Aigües is the only municipality with a population of more than a thousand. The rest are Tollos, Famorca, Almudaina, Quatretondeta, Benasu, Alcoleja, Llosa de Camacho, Alcosser, Gorga, Tormos, Sagra, Gaianes, Orxeta and Vall de Laguar.
Enforcement of consumer bonds was an issue discussed at Alicante City Council this Tuesday by both the government team and the opposition. When asked in the weeks since the campaign was announced, Antonio Manresa, a spokesman for the government team led by Luis Barcala, said: “There is still a queue for an economic injection in businesses. As for the deadlines, they are being evaluated, very tight because of the elections. If it is not done now, they will do it when they are in charge of those regions.
This issue was also addressed by the municipal spokesperson of Compromís. Natxo Bellido. “We already knew this was going to happen. Most of the ads they do go to waste for months. To help reinvigorate consumption, consumer bonds had to be launched in the context of inflation and the challenges our productive industries and businesses are going through. As the Valencian spokesperson said, we see the weeks go by and the disintegrating municipal government is once again turning its back on the productive sectors and merchants of this city.
Differences
As for the features of this new edition of the Provincial Assembly consumption coupon, unlike the two that were run in the past 2022, on this occasion, the number of campaigns will depend on each municipality, as the helpline will be extended through 2023. As in previous versions, each coupon offers 50% discount at participating merchants and can be used in a single purchase.
While the amount of aid each municipality will receive varies according to its size, the money in circulation is double. During 2023, it will be up to city councils to decide whether the bonus will be used in one or several campaigns and the types of businesses that can participate in the initiative.