A few years ago during the time when Francesc Antich was Balearic president, a whole host of politicians and various others took themselves off to Brussels in order to present a unified front in lobbying against what they thought might be contained in an EU directive. They were concerned specifically with Europe-wide rules for pyrotechnics and pyrotechnical products. There was concern that the directive might place unfavourable constraints on that key element of many a Mallorcan fiesta, the correfoc.
In addition to the politicians (numbered among whom were no fewer than forty mayors), there were demons' representatives, unionists, businesspeople, writers and artists: a contingent of some 150 people. Once in Brussels, demons put on a show, views on the directive were given, and everyone returned to Mallorca, having gone off on a fairly pointless mission. There was no intention that the directive should interfere with traditions in a harmful manner. When it was finally published, this principle was made clear.
It was never adequately explained how much this jaunt cost. It was unclear if the government had paid for everyone or if at least some had paid for themselves (the suggestion was that the government had coughed up). It was one of those relatively minor controversies which crop up from time to time and allow the opposition to do some shouting before everyone forgets about it.
The trip was in fact made in February 2009. At that time the full force of crisis had yet to truly dawn on Balearic politicians. Had they planned their trip a year later, one suspects the numbers would have been considerably lower. The trip was, though, to later be held up as an example of unnecessary expense.
When the Bauzá regime swept to power with a mandate for austerity, this sort of jolly would no longer be tolerated. Maria Salom, newly installed at the Council of Mallorca, having replaced Francina Armengol as its president, saw to it that a body called Eurolocal-Mallorca was scrapped. One news report described this body as "another strange consortium" that had been created by Armengol. It had been in existence for two years by the time that the PP took over. There was little evidence of it having done anything other than to send people off to Brussels for a chinwag.
Bauzá didn't do himself any real favours by occasionally disappearing to Madrid with entire entourages that included tame journalists, but in general the austerity rule was applied to trips. It still is applied, and Podemos have helped to ensure that it sticks. Or have they?
It might be recalled that during the Bauzá administration there was the business with the education minister Joana Maria Camps clearing off to Menorca on a regular basis; Menorca is her home island. The teachers' assembly, which had it in for her anyway, took the issue to court, noting that between May and December 2013 she had been to Menorca on 32 occasions, quite often over weekends. Back and forth the matter went between different courts before the whole case was "archived" at the end of 2015.
It is the memory of the days when justifying the travel of ministers (and others) was open to liberal application and the memory of the Camps case that now dominate thinking. The fact therefore that two PSOE ministers made a total of 28 trips to their home islands in 2016 has come under a spot of scrutiny.
Marc Pons (transport, land, energy) went to Menorca on seventeen occasions. These trips are contrasted with three to Ibiza. Pilar Costa (minister for the presidency) went to Ibiza eleven times and twice to Menorca. Ministers clearly do need to go to the other islands - they are after all Balearic ministers - and in some respects the more they go the better, as it ensures that the other islands don't feel left out. In the case of Pons, given his portfolio, there is probably more justification than most. But it is the fact that the visits are loaded in favour of home islands, which was very much the case with Camps, that has raised some eyebrows. Moreover, there is also the fact that ministers from other islands receive 22,000 euros a year on top of their ministerial salaries to go towards the cost of living in Mallorca.
It is being pointed out that both ministers paid for their own trips on occasions, but should the number of trips really be considered excessive? They're not in the Camps league, that's for sure, and is it not almost inevitable that this will happen with ministers from other islands? A rule of thumb has been adopted whereby there is a balance in ministerial representation from Menorca and Ibiza. This being the case, is it that surprising that there is something of a bias in the trips made? At least they're not going to Brussels for no particularly good reason.
Showing posts with label Travel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Travel. Show all posts
Thursday, January 26, 2017
Friday, August 12, 2016
Low-Cost Pejorative Or Imperative?
A pejorative is a word or term that carries negative connotations and is used to criticise, belittle and express a low opinion of an individual or a group of people. it can therefore be deployed, and is, to convey a lack of respect or hostility towards social classes or specific groups which share common characteristics. Depending on how they are expressed and on the context, certain words can assume the status of a pejorative. Expats is a good example.
A further one that is highly germane to Mallorca's socioeconomic circumstances is "low cost". Normally used as an adjective, it has become a substantive in its own right. Low cost as a concept is ipso facto a "bad thing", as it assumes a negative consequence by the very fact that cost is low.
We currently have a great deal of low cost to contend with, all of it business-related and, by implication, also associated with social class. Low Cost Travel Group is an obvious case in point. The name itself, which would have been looked upon in a pejorative manner by many even prior to its collapse, always had an inherent marketing conflict. Attractive to some, it would not have been to others. Because of the collapse, the naysayers will now claim that they were right all along. The business model, regardless of cover from bondholders or not, was flawed on account of the low-cost philosophy.
This isn't and shouldn't be the only conclusion to be drawn. Low cost doesn't have to mean an in-built business weakness. Indeed, the online travel agency would have been inspired by the very success of companies which have made a virtue (and lots of money) out of being low cost. Ryanair is one such.
Airlines like Ryanair have of course been condemned for a variety of reasons: sharp practice, not being as low cost as they might appear and rotten service. But the low-cost model for airlines has become so pervasive that it has overtaken regular airlines in terms of passenger numbers coming in and out of Palma's Son Sant Joan. To the ranks of Ryanair, easyJet, Norwegian, Vueling and others are to be added Air Europa Express, a belated attempt by Globalia to enter the low-cost market, and one which was met with the threat of pilot strike action.
It is informative that statistics are regularly released which indicate the level of this low-cost travel. This is informative not just because of the factual data but also because there is a sense that the data are presented with a pejorative in mind. There is a great deal of resistance to "low cost" in Mallorca of whatever kind it might be. It is a "bad thing".
The assumption, a totally false one, is that if a service is marketed as low cost it will automatically attract a class of traveller castigated by the unthinking pejorative of "low quality". We all know that some travellers are far from well-off, but the folly of this assumption was no better exposed than when the former president of the Majorca Tourist Board expressed it. The response was one of outrage from those who are perfectly well-off, thank you, but who still use low-cost airlines.
The assumption has been shot to pieces even more by an understanding of markets which reveals that consumers - filthy rich, better-off or on their uppers - are now so savvy that they seek out deals. The internet and social media have made this ever easier. Consumers, regardless of circumstance, aren't stupid. If they can spend less, if convenience is satisfied, then they'll make decisions based on these factors. There are naturally those whose aspirations and self-esteem (as well as money) would mean never willingly opting for the pejorative of low cost, but even they might have to if competition has made low cost the main or only option.
It's this word - competition - which says a lot about the antagonism towards low cost in Mallorca. For a tourist destination built on cost that wasn't just cheap as chips but cheaper, it is now payback time, and this comes in the form - it is hoped - of elevated hotel prices with improved quality attracting a tourism class which is the antithesis of what gave the island its wealth in the first place.
But while hoteliers might attempt to sew things up to their RevPar and bottom-line advantage, there is a whole other economy where the competitive forces of low cost are having field days. Airlines are just one example. There are also coach transfer services, car-hire agencies, shops. The list can go on. Hairdressers are another.
Defending local business and economic interests is valid enough, but it is a defence too often predicated on a demonising of operations which have disrupted one-time uncompetitive markets. Low cost is no pejorative, it has become an imperative.
A further one that is highly germane to Mallorca's socioeconomic circumstances is "low cost". Normally used as an adjective, it has become a substantive in its own right. Low cost as a concept is ipso facto a "bad thing", as it assumes a negative consequence by the very fact that cost is low.
We currently have a great deal of low cost to contend with, all of it business-related and, by implication, also associated with social class. Low Cost Travel Group is an obvious case in point. The name itself, which would have been looked upon in a pejorative manner by many even prior to its collapse, always had an inherent marketing conflict. Attractive to some, it would not have been to others. Because of the collapse, the naysayers will now claim that they were right all along. The business model, regardless of cover from bondholders or not, was flawed on account of the low-cost philosophy.
This isn't and shouldn't be the only conclusion to be drawn. Low cost doesn't have to mean an in-built business weakness. Indeed, the online travel agency would have been inspired by the very success of companies which have made a virtue (and lots of money) out of being low cost. Ryanair is one such.
Airlines like Ryanair have of course been condemned for a variety of reasons: sharp practice, not being as low cost as they might appear and rotten service. But the low-cost model for airlines has become so pervasive that it has overtaken regular airlines in terms of passenger numbers coming in and out of Palma's Son Sant Joan. To the ranks of Ryanair, easyJet, Norwegian, Vueling and others are to be added Air Europa Express, a belated attempt by Globalia to enter the low-cost market, and one which was met with the threat of pilot strike action.
It is informative that statistics are regularly released which indicate the level of this low-cost travel. This is informative not just because of the factual data but also because there is a sense that the data are presented with a pejorative in mind. There is a great deal of resistance to "low cost" in Mallorca of whatever kind it might be. It is a "bad thing".
The assumption, a totally false one, is that if a service is marketed as low cost it will automatically attract a class of traveller castigated by the unthinking pejorative of "low quality". We all know that some travellers are far from well-off, but the folly of this assumption was no better exposed than when the former president of the Majorca Tourist Board expressed it. The response was one of outrage from those who are perfectly well-off, thank you, but who still use low-cost airlines.
The assumption has been shot to pieces even more by an understanding of markets which reveals that consumers - filthy rich, better-off or on their uppers - are now so savvy that they seek out deals. The internet and social media have made this ever easier. Consumers, regardless of circumstance, aren't stupid. If they can spend less, if convenience is satisfied, then they'll make decisions based on these factors. There are naturally those whose aspirations and self-esteem (as well as money) would mean never willingly opting for the pejorative of low cost, but even they might have to if competition has made low cost the main or only option.
It's this word - competition - which says a lot about the antagonism towards low cost in Mallorca. For a tourist destination built on cost that wasn't just cheap as chips but cheaper, it is now payback time, and this comes in the form - it is hoped - of elevated hotel prices with improved quality attracting a tourism class which is the antithesis of what gave the island its wealth in the first place.
But while hoteliers might attempt to sew things up to their RevPar and bottom-line advantage, there is a whole other economy where the competitive forces of low cost are having field days. Airlines are just one example. There are also coach transfer services, car-hire agencies, shops. The list can go on. Hairdressers are another.
Defending local business and economic interests is valid enough, but it is a defence too often predicated on a demonising of operations which have disrupted one-time uncompetitive markets. Low cost is no pejorative, it has become an imperative.
Thursday, June 27, 2013
Spain Lackofinfo.es
There is a new website portal for travellers to Spain. It is sort of new. Spain.info has been relaunched. And relaunched with some fanfare as well as some anxiety.
The new, improved Spain.info, an all-Spain travel information system that falls under the national tourism promotion agency Turespaña, is going to be all-singing, all-dancing. Possibly. It isn't exactly all-singing or all-dancing just at present, despite the fanfare of its relaunch that might have suggested it would be.
The revamped system works but only after a fashion. I have put it to a few simple tests, using the "international English" version of the site. The first test was to find accommodation. Now, where does one find this? It isn't listed on the main banner menu. It must be under "What are you looking for?". No, not there. "Practical information"? Yes, there it is. How silly of me to think that it would have been listed under the more obvious heading.
By default, having clicked on "Accommodation", a search for "Hotels" comes up. There is a downwards arrow with the Hotels banner to suggest you can look for other types of accommodation. It doesn't work. Not to worry, there are five other types listed below and they have upwards arrows. How about flats? Yep, that works. So, let's find Mallorca. Enter. And what do you get? Seven pages of rental agencies and estate agents in places other than Mallorca.
Not to worry, let's try Hotels anyway. Mallorca. Enter. What do you get? Page upon page upon page, starting not with Mallorca but with Almeria. I didn't bother to wade through the numerous pages to discover if there were indeed any hotels for Mallorca.
What about transport? There's a specific "Book your trip" thing on the home pages. Flights or trains. Let's go for flights. Origin: let's use London Luton. Destination: Palma de Mallorca. Enter. What do we get? Another portal. Skyscanner. In Spanish, not English. It wants the origin and destination information again, as it seems not to have registered this. Enter. Ah, four flights. Easyjet. As I might have expected.
These few and simple tests were not wholly satisfactory, though of course one of them wouldn't be expected to throw up any information. Flats. Mallorca. If there were any information, it would be very odd and it would also be very illegal, according to the Balearics Government at any rate. Moreover, it may well become very illegal in other parts of Spain (if it isn't already), now that the Tenancy Act has shifted responsibility to regional governments to enact legislation that may (or may not) be along the same lines as that in the Balearics. Even if these other regional governments don't have the same attitude, the very presence of "Flats" on what is a Spanish Government website is odd in itself. This is a Spanish Government which, as with the Balearics Government, wants to stamp out the so-called illegal offer, and that, by and large, means flats. Maybe someone will point this anomaly out to Segittur, the governmental organisation which specialises in tourism technologies and which has been responsible for overhauling Spain.info.
The fanfare for the relaunch, with national tourism minister José Manuel Soria blowing the loudest trumpet, included reference to grand features such as being able to compare prices for flights, which is all fine and dandy, but isn't it a bit late? Google Flights and others are already doing this. So, the Spain.info finder is useful but not exactly innovative, while it isn't actually its finder system anyway; it's Skyscanner's.
The upgraded website has caused anxieties amongst Spain's travel agents, who were under the impression that users would be able to book direct and so miss them out. This isn't the case, so the travel agents can breathe more easily. But to what extent the portal will create additional business for them may be questionable.
Much will depend on how easy users find the system, and the initial impression is that it isn't as easy as it might be. Perhaps there are teething troubles, though it looks more like the website has been put up without having been finished. If it has been, then no one's going to be booking any hotels in Mallorca.
More than this, though, is whether users actually think to go to a site for Spain if they want to go to Mallorca (or any other part of Spain). Put another way, do travellers think "Spain" rather than individual parts of the country? Rather like the "Marca España" is now a questionable concept, so a whole-country internet travel portal is also questionable.
Any comments to andrew@thealcudiaguide.com please.
The new, improved Spain.info, an all-Spain travel information system that falls under the national tourism promotion agency Turespaña, is going to be all-singing, all-dancing. Possibly. It isn't exactly all-singing or all-dancing just at present, despite the fanfare of its relaunch that might have suggested it would be.
The revamped system works but only after a fashion. I have put it to a few simple tests, using the "international English" version of the site. The first test was to find accommodation. Now, where does one find this? It isn't listed on the main banner menu. It must be under "What are you looking for?". No, not there. "Practical information"? Yes, there it is. How silly of me to think that it would have been listed under the more obvious heading.
By default, having clicked on "Accommodation", a search for "Hotels" comes up. There is a downwards arrow with the Hotels banner to suggest you can look for other types of accommodation. It doesn't work. Not to worry, there are five other types listed below and they have upwards arrows. How about flats? Yep, that works. So, let's find Mallorca. Enter. And what do you get? Seven pages of rental agencies and estate agents in places other than Mallorca.
Not to worry, let's try Hotels anyway. Mallorca. Enter. What do you get? Page upon page upon page, starting not with Mallorca but with Almeria. I didn't bother to wade through the numerous pages to discover if there were indeed any hotels for Mallorca.
What about transport? There's a specific "Book your trip" thing on the home pages. Flights or trains. Let's go for flights. Origin: let's use London Luton. Destination: Palma de Mallorca. Enter. What do we get? Another portal. Skyscanner. In Spanish, not English. It wants the origin and destination information again, as it seems not to have registered this. Enter. Ah, four flights. Easyjet. As I might have expected.
These few and simple tests were not wholly satisfactory, though of course one of them wouldn't be expected to throw up any information. Flats. Mallorca. If there were any information, it would be very odd and it would also be very illegal, according to the Balearics Government at any rate. Moreover, it may well become very illegal in other parts of Spain (if it isn't already), now that the Tenancy Act has shifted responsibility to regional governments to enact legislation that may (or may not) be along the same lines as that in the Balearics. Even if these other regional governments don't have the same attitude, the very presence of "Flats" on what is a Spanish Government website is odd in itself. This is a Spanish Government which, as with the Balearics Government, wants to stamp out the so-called illegal offer, and that, by and large, means flats. Maybe someone will point this anomaly out to Segittur, the governmental organisation which specialises in tourism technologies and which has been responsible for overhauling Spain.info.
The fanfare for the relaunch, with national tourism minister José Manuel Soria blowing the loudest trumpet, included reference to grand features such as being able to compare prices for flights, which is all fine and dandy, but isn't it a bit late? Google Flights and others are already doing this. So, the Spain.info finder is useful but not exactly innovative, while it isn't actually its finder system anyway; it's Skyscanner's.
The upgraded website has caused anxieties amongst Spain's travel agents, who were under the impression that users would be able to book direct and so miss them out. This isn't the case, so the travel agents can breathe more easily. But to what extent the portal will create additional business for them may be questionable.
Much will depend on how easy users find the system, and the initial impression is that it isn't as easy as it might be. Perhaps there are teething troubles, though it looks more like the website has been put up without having been finished. If it has been, then no one's going to be booking any hotels in Mallorca.
More than this, though, is whether users actually think to go to a site for Spain if they want to go to Mallorca (or any other part of Spain). Put another way, do travellers think "Spain" rather than individual parts of the country? Rather like the "Marca España" is now a questionable concept, so a whole-country internet travel portal is also questionable.
Any comments to andrew@thealcudiaguide.com please.
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