Our program in Englisn

DEMOCRACY 

+ participation 

People should be able to decide what is done it their town, and not only through a vote every four years. So we will: 

• Approve an Ordinance for Public Participation which includes participation in Town Hall commissions, consultations, etc. 
• Create independent open commissions which are truly independent and which have decision making powers, covering (at least) Economic Development, Youth, and Social Programme and Fiestas. 
• Any topic will be subject to a consultation if 15% of the electors request this. 
• We will establish a system of “participatory budgets” 
• Through Agenda Local 21 we will develop participation in sustainability: planning, recycling, etc. 

+ transparency 

The Town Hall manages public resources, property and services that belong to us all. So everyone should have full access to the relevant information. We will: 

• Publish all information which is of interest to the community on the municipal Web. 
• Create an App which people can use to follow developments and make their contributions. 
• Regularly publish our declarations of assets, so that citizens can have confidence in their representatives. 
• Carry out an external audit of the accounts of the Town Hall of recent years, which are unclear. 
• Carry out external audit of the accounts while we are in office, to guarantee probity. 

+ promote associations 

Associations give life to a town, generating contacts between members and enlivening the community through their activities. So we will support and listen to the associations. To support Deià associations we will: 

• Establish fixed annual grants, making them independent of the politicians who happen to be in power. 
• Provide administrative support in dealing with bureaucracy. 
• Give them the right to speak at council meetings 
• Invite them to engage with the Town Hall and political parties through the Social Programme Commission 
• Provide financial support and, especially, the services that they need to carry out the activities they choose.  

+ legality 

The Town Hall has on a number of occasions acted illegally: the houses in Llucalcari, adjudication of sewage services, contracts which have not followed the proper procedures, restaurant bills for relatives paid for with public funds, etc. This will no longer occur.  

• All the members of our list commit to resigning if they are ever arraigned for corruption. 

+ debate 

The healthy exchange of ideas is the basis of any deomcracy. So we will: 

• Create an Annual Debate on the State of the Town. 
• Hold council meetings in the evening, so that everyone can attend and see what their representatives are doing. 
• After each council meeting, we will hold an open session for public participation. 
• Transmit council meetings on the Internet. 

+ the media 

Vigorous, independent, and free media are the sign of a mature democracy. So we will:  

• Provide a grant to s'Encruia (or any other municipal publication which may appear), independently of whether this publication criticizes us or not. 

• Study the possibility of creating a municipal radio station, based on the experience of Puigpunyent. 
• Take steps to ensure that all possible means of communication are accessible (especially TV and radio) 

+ institutional quality 

The effectiveness and probity of institutions is essential if the country is to function smoothly. So we will: 

• Commit to collaborating with the Consell and Govern, whichever party is in power. 
• Make the Mancomunitat region effective: possible joint services, and  meetings of many kinds between the villages of the region. 
• Always try to reach agreement with the opposition, and inform them of the initiatives of the governing group, so that they can make contributions at an early stage. 

ENVIRONMENT 

+ low impact development 

Our landscape is our most important heritage, and also the source of our wealth. The practical life of the town is a priority, but it must be compatible with respect for the environment. So we will: 

• Revise the town planning documents to support growth around the historic urban centres, avoid scattered development, and support natural growth according to demand rather than speculation. 
• Promote the rental of empty houses 
• Collaborate in new social housing, but for rent rather than purchase. 
• Seek to stop the construction of underground commercial development under the car park of Can Vallès, which have already been given outline planning permission by the Town Hall, and which are awaiting approval by the Consell. If the Ecotax is reintroduced, we will try our utmost for the Govern to buy Can Vallès.  
• Create a plan to bury the electric cables which are still above ground, within a maximum of 8 years. 
• Provide Son Coll with the basic services which the law requires. 

• Build a public lavatory in Deià, possibly in the parking of Can Roig. 

+ public paths 

Every time a public path is closed, part of our heritage is stolen from us, we are stopped from visiting part of Deià, and one of our main tourist activities is impacted. So we will: 

• Expand the catalogue of paths, re-opening those which have been closed that are judged to be public. 
• Try to reach agreement for right of way with land owners, in those cases where paths are declared private. 
• Work to ensure that walkers respect the properties which paths cross. 
• Maintain public paths in good condition, especially those in built up areas, whether they are municipal or if we have to pressurise other institutions.  
• Create a project (possibly a pavement/walkway) so that walkers on GR221 don't have to walk on the road between Son Bujosa and path up to Son Coll.  
• Improve the signs on the paths. 

+ heritage 

The cultural, architectural and natural heritage of Deià is spectacular, but we are often unaware of this, or hide it from our visitors. This leads to deterioration of our heritage, which is sometimes irreversible. So we will: 

• Expand the catalogue of heritage assets 
• Create itineraries so that Mallorquins and tourists can get to know our heritage. 
• Start work on cataloging and restoring the old irrigation systems. 
• Maintain the town in good condition, including the more distant areas. 

+ responsible mobility and public transport 

It is necessary to ensure effective and cheap public transport, and personal mobility. So we will: 

• Complement the subsidies of the Govern so that bus tickets are cheaper for Deià residents. 
• Campaign for Deià residents to receive a discount for the Sóller tunnel. 
• Pressurise the Conselleria to improve the bus timetable. 
• Build a route for children to get down to the school. 
• Create a route to the school from the church and from Pintor Sanjuan Street. 
• Create a plan to avoid traffic jams in the town. 
• Adapt the Residents Zone ordinances so that green parking permits are linked to payment of traffic tax in Deià.  

+ natural resources: energy and water 

We want Deià to be, in the medium term, a leading municipality in sustainability. So we will: 

• Increase the proportion of renewable energy in Deià. 
• Make use of funds from the EU, Govern and Consell to improve sustainability, especially in public buildings. 
• Improve water management in Deià. 
• Invest in expanding water storage for the summer. 

+ sport 

Sporting associations need to be supported, to support a more cohesive and healthy society. So we will: 

Support sporting activities, especially for the young, and continue to support petanca, tennis, football and cycling. 

Create grants for young people to participate in sporting competitions outside Mallorca. 

Maintain the Deià Trophy in Challenge Mallorca. 

Hold more sporting tournaments during the fiestas. 

Encourage tournaments between the municipalities of the Serra de Tramuntana, and between schools. 

+ recycling 

The present system is inefficient and expensive. So we will: 

• Improve the state of the Punt Verd recycling centre. 
• As a first step, before setting up a new system, increase the number of recycling locations and containers. 
• Implement, over the coming four year, a system of selective rubbish collection, developed as part of a participative process, and adapted to the social needs of Deià. 

+ agriculture 

Agriculture is in a deep recession, and is only present as a residual activity. But it is an essential means of preserving our landscape, and it needs to be supported. So we will: 

• Create a free service to transport agricultural produce to the coorperatives in Sóller during the main harvest periods. 
• Organise courses in ecological agriculture. 
• Create subsidies for the maintenance of terraces and olive groves. 
• Agriculture will be on the agenda of the Economic Development Commission at least once a year, so that those involved in the sector (full or part time) can suggest initiatives to the Town Hall, associations, and political parties.  

+ Serra 

We need to work so that the Serra mountains are both a pleasant place to visit and also ensure sustainable development. So we will: 

• Establish a consortium with the other municipalities, the Consell, the Govern, landowners, and social groups to manage use of Serra. 

+ Woodlands 

Our woodlands are increasingly abandoned, with a high risk of fire. So we will: 

• Act to increase the clearing of undergrowth, and the establishment of fire breaks. 

+ Cala 

The Cala is one of the most well known parts of our town, both for Deià residents and for visitors. So we will: 

• Provide services: a guard, public lavatory in the car park, lighting, railing at the side of the torrent, etc. 
• Improve the system of buoys. 
• Keep the torrent and rocks clean, and keep the area for boats in good condition. 
• Create a project to maintain safety from land slides. 
• Create a regeneration project to address the worrying erosion, and try to reconstruct at least one of the boat slipways. 

IDENTITY 

+ library 

A library encourages the activities of reading, study and cultural activities. So we will: 

• Create a library. 
• Establish a collection of resources about Deià. 

+ interculturality 

Deià is no longer an exemplar of integrated multiculturalism. We want the Town Hall to promote meetings between the rich and diverse cultures which coexist in our town. So we will: 

• Promote the learning of the official languages among incomers and foreigners, and of foreign languages among Mallorquins.  
• Introduce inter-cultural activities in the municipal celebrations and events. 
• Organise, at least once a year, an inter-cultural meeting. 

+ support for our own langauge 

Deià is one of three towns in Mallorca which has not adopted any policy of linguistic normalisation. So we will: 

Establish a programme of normalisation of place names and of street signs 

Support the use of Catalan, especially in the organisation of classes at various levels. 

+ support for creative activity 

Deià has long been the focus for creative activity. The town should not live of its reputation, but needs to support current activity. So we will: 

Re-establish the Deià International Festival of Rock. 

Support groups in Deià 

Create prize for Catalan poetry “Notes de Deià”.  

Re-establish the Robert Graves multilingual poetry prize.  

Create a Web page to promote Deià painters. 

Organise an arts fair. 

+ Fiestas for the community 

The fiestas are a time for meeting up and having fun, and even more so if they are built on the of the efforts of the people of the town. So we will: 

• Ensure that the fiestas reflect the history and character of Deià, and not that of other towns. 
• Expand the calendar of fiestas of Deià, reintroducing those which have been ignored (the fiestas of Llucalcari, Saint Peter of the Cala, full moon, Saint Sebastian, etc), and including new ones (the Day of Mallorca, Day of the Balearic Islands, anniversary of the separation of Deià from Valldemossa). 

+ technology 

We will:  

• Promote improved Internet connections, and set up municipal wifi zones. 
• Create a municipal App. 
• Provide computers in the library, so that everyone can have access. 

+ cultural and social activities 

We will: 

• Organise courses and workshops, responding to the interests of the community. 
• Support the theatre group, the crafts association, and the choir. 
• Support a programme of amateur-professional theatre, and support the creation of a municipal theatre school. 
• Work with all the associations of the town to organise cultural events. 
• Help in the organisation of events such as Tertúlies@Deià, Deià Heydays or Idea Deià, and of two or three fairs in spring or autumn, to prolong the tourist season.  
• Revitalise Ca n'Alluny as a centre for cultural events. 
• Continue support for the weekly market. 

+ Support for older people 

Older people have a lot to say and to contribute. So we will: 

• Work shoulder to shoulder with the Associació de la Tercera Edat, providing support and advice in carrying out its chosen activities.  
• Start up inter-generational learning programmes 
• Promote courses aimed at maintaining the health of older people (memory, keep fit, etc.), in collaboration with the Associació de la Tercera Edat. 

+ support for education 

We need to support the education and training of young people. So we will reserve 5% of the municipal budget for this purpose, distributed as follows:  

• Maintain grants to the Robert Graves primary school. 
• Increase support for secondary students at IES Colom Guillem i Casasnovas, Sóller. 
• Support the fees for baccalaureate, professional training, and university studies at any public institution. 
• Reserve 70.000€ to create a minimum income for students during their studies, so that no-one has to give up for lack of money. These grants will be higher if the chosen courses are not offered in Mallorca. 
• Pressurise the Conselleria to remove the asbestos roofs from the Sóller school. 

+ support for the young 

Young people are our future, but also our present. Nevertheless, municipal politics has often passed them by. We want to place them at the centre of the decision making process. So we will: 

• Create a fund to support young people from Deià, so that they can rent a house here and not move to cheaper towns. 
• Support the creation of a youth association 
• Build a skate park 
• Assess the possibility of a running a late night bus, to avoid the use of cars when going for a night out. 

• Support young people in creating more activities for themselves, and request a youth social officer from the Consell. 

ALTERNATIVA 

+ quality management 

We strive for excellence in public services, and commit to a high level of achievement, with strong planning and control. So we will: 

• Make better use of the material and human resources of the Town Hall 
• We commit to eliminating the debt, and to reduce spending on day-to-day costs, on salaries for high level council officers, and on fees to for representation.  

+ Llucalcari 

The residents of Deià have paid decades of lawyers fees to defend illegal licenses for chalets in Llucalcari, and a private business. In recent years we have paid hundreds of thousands of euros to demolish the chalets. We say NO to continuing with this shameful Council which has become an inverted Robin Hood, robbing the normal citizen so that a few can become rich. Now the owners of the chalets are claiming millions of pounds of compensation from the Town Hall. So we will 

• Defend the interests of the town, so that it does not need to pay any compensation for these chalets. 
• If the courts decree that the owners have a right to compensation, we will demand this from those who were responsible for the technical or political decisions. 

+ reasonable rates and taxes 

We will: 

• Progressively reduce the IBI for medium and low rates, as well as increasing rebates and subsidies (for single occupancy, energy efficient houses, businesses which are open all year, etc.). 
• Study the option of giving greater role to the IAE and ICIO taxes. 
• Maintain the fractional payment of municipal taxes. 

• Change the water ordinance, so that the calculation of rates takes into consideration the number of inhabitants in each house. 
• Change the ordinance for sewage, so that is charged in relation to consumption (or to average consumption, for those who are not connected to municipal supplies). 

+ public services managed by the Town Hall 

In Deià our water, rubbish and sewage are privatised, but we believe that the council should be capable of managing them directly. So we will: 

• Recover control of public services to the degree that this is possible. This will mean that Deià residents will not need to pay the profit margins of the companies which charge for water, rubbish and sewage, and will pay only the cost of the service.  
• The most expensive aspects will be managed through the mancomunitat region. 

+ serveis socials 

We will: 

• Pressurise the Ministry of Health to improve the schedule of the doctor in Deià.  
• Increase the resources for Social Services, and clarify their role and activies.  
• Maintain the nursery school. 
• Create an anti-crisis plan, to avoid social exclusion and to promote re-employment. 

+ support for small businesses 

We will: 

• Reduce the IBI rates during the winter for businesses which stay open all year round.  
• Listen to small businesses, and create the Commission for Economic Development. 
• Improve the tourist information service. 

• Respond to one of their main requests: increase in the number of parking places while minimising their impact. Our model is for small spaces on the edge of town. While we seek these spaces, we guarantee that not one parking place will be lost. 
• Support entrepreneurs, with fiscal discounts and advice. 
• Encourage people to come to get married in Deià, with a publicity campaign, and discounts in taxes (50% for spending 200€ in a Deià business, 100% if it is more).  
• Promote adoption of cooperative business models.