Spanish leftist lawmaker Alberto Ibez has demanded sweeping restrictions on Spains inbound tourism sector, openly calling for tourism degrowth in a weekend interview with Madrid-based Europapress.
According to Breitbart, Ibez, a member of Comproms a leftist Valencian regionalist coalition argued that Spains tourism model has already made it impossible to live in major coastal cities such as Alicante and Valencia. He insisted that the industry must be deliberately scaled back through state intervention, a stance that places ideology over the free-market principles that have long underpinned Spains economic recovery and job creation.
Europapress reported that Ibez has submitted a formal request to the Spanish Congress to create a parliamentary subcommittee tasked with examining the impact of tourism on residents quality of life. He said the bodys mission would be to capture the frustration of Spains tourist hubs, warning that in many coastal areas residents are being pushed out so that neighborhoods can become tourist attractions.
The lawmaker claimed that Valencia now receives more cruise ships and passengers than the city has inhabitants, and used that assertion to justify his demand for strict limits on such activity. In his view, this influx does not contribute economically and severely undermines the citys livability, despite tourisms well-documented role in sustaining local businesses and employment.
You close a bakery to open a locker rental or bike rental shop, with all the harm this causes the city, Ibez said, framing traditional commerce as a casualty of visitor-focused services. He reiterated his backing for tourism degrowth in light of this trend and added, We say this without any hesitation.
Ibez explained that his coalition advanced the subcommittee proposal after the socialist governments Secretary of State for Tourism appeared before Congress and deeply disappointed us. He complained that her remarks failed to recognize what he described as the mounting distress in Spains tourist cities, a narrative that aligns with the broader left-wing push to curtail market-driven sectors in favor of tighter state control.
In the Valencian region, not only in coastal towns and cities, but particularly in cities like Valencia or Alicante, it is impossible to live. Residents are being pushed out so that the neighborhoods can become sets for tourists, he said, portraying tourism as an almost predatory force rather than a vital source of prosperity.
Therefore, its not just that we shouldnt expand ports like Valencias, we need to limit the arrival of massive cruise ships, he continued. They pollute heavily and dont contribute to the citys economy. His comments echo the environmentalist rhetoric frequently used to justify restrictions that risk undermining private enterprise and local jobs.
These are people who come down here and dont know if theyre in Valencia, Seville, or Barcelona; they buy the same souvenir pin no matter where they are, and they spend no more than five euros on a beer, he asserted, dismissing cruise passengers as low-value visitors despite the broader spending they generate in hospitality, retail, and services. The lawmaker singled out Benidorm as a model for his argument, even though the citys economic survival has long depended on mass tourism.
It blows my mind. We dont need more tourists; we cant accommodate any more tourists. And we can keep denying this until the day comes when we walk through a neighborhood where there arent any residents left, he said, invoking a doomsday scenario that overlooks the capacity of local authorities to manage growth without strangling a key industry.
Asked about the alarm his call for tourism reduction might cause in cities heavily reliant on visitors, Ibez claimed that places like Valencia no longer live off tourism, but rather that tourism lives off the city and is devouring it. His framing suggests a zero-sum conflict between residents and tourists, rather than a balanced approach that protects both community life and economic freedom.
Ibez told Europapress that his vision of tourism degrowth would require implementing an industrial restructuring plan that generates jobs and economic activity in the cities. Yet he offered no concrete roadmap for replacing the substantial employment and revenue that tourism currently provides, leaving open the question of whether ideological hostility to mass tourism is being prioritized over the livelihoods of workers and small business owners who depend on it.
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