The Alicante Provincial Council is actively shaping the budget for the coming year, with the plan targeting 2023 implementation in December. In this context, the socialist group proposed a series of measures to be included in the budget draft. A key initiative is the creation of a program to assist municipalities facing heightened energy costs, a need estimated to require about 20 million euros in funding.
Additionally, the socialist group urged the allocation of 5.2 million euros to establish a new Provincial Energy Savings Plan. They also called for a 10 million euro financial fund aimed at supporting local businesses and a 25 percent increase to the Tourism Board’s budget to boost regional tourism activities and related services.
Toni Frances, spokesperson for the socialist group in the Provincial Assembly, accused the PP party of hindering administration and leadership within the Alicante Provincial Assembly. He highlighted that the spending budget for 2021 showed a relatively low execution rate of 61.91 percent, noting a downward trend from 65.07 percent in prior years. He emphasized that these figures indicate a lag in budget execution and cited September 30, 2022 as a reference point, when liabilities of 154,863,816 euros had been recognized for the current financial year, representing only about 32.32 percent of the total loans executed.
Frances also defended the Municipal Cooperation Fund and reiterated the socialist group’s call to withdraw the contentious administrative appeal against the Consell Agreement of 17 June 2022, which approved the Plan FCL Core Financing Sector. The discussion reflects ongoing tensions over how funds are allocated to support local governance, energy resilience, business continuity, and tourism development across the province.