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It is estimated that in Menorca there are approximately 114,000 tourist beds, of which around 54,000 correspond to hotels and apartments, and another 30,000 correspond to authorised homes (most of which were previously used as residential housing). The remaining 30,000 places are offered in homes without a tourist licence.

When basic needs are left solely in the hands of the market, they end up going to whoever can pay the most. In recent years, we have seen that the number of tourists visiting the island has increased by around 80% in 15 years. Most of this significant increase is being accommodated in houses.

The unwillingness to set limits (such as placing a cap on rental vehicles, as other islands do) is causing a growing demand for accommodation, which translates into a large unregulated supply. This has three worrying effects: 1) it increases unplanned tourist pressure on Menorca; 2) a higher volume of tourists requires more labour, which must come from outside; 3) tourists and workers occupy homes that could otherwise be available to residents.

Another problem arising from the market-driven approach to housing is the concentration of ownership. As it is a profitable long-term market asset, there are investment funds and large owners who intervene by buying homes and fixing capital. According to the General Directorate of the Cadastre, in Menorca 2,724 homes belong to owners who have 11 or more properties.

The fact of becoming an island to visit rather than to live in also intensifies another threat. There is a growing trend towards second homes. In 2011, 70% of housing in Menorca was used as primary residences according to the housing census carried out by the National Statistics Institute. A decade later, the same census detects a drop of almost 10% in this type of housing. In ten years, we have lost homes for year-round living, either due to tourist rentals or second-home use.

For this reason, the Via Menorca campaign has been warning that the overcrowding we are experiencing, which increases every year, has negative effects both for residents and for tourists themselves. Increasingly, voices within the tourism sector state that they cannot maintain stable workforces because housing prices make it very difficult.

Menorca needs to rethink its current model. We cannot rely on endless growth on a finite island that has long shown signs of saturation (declining aquifers, beach congestion, waste generation, etc.).

Tourist rentals, both legal and illegal, currently occupy around 12,000 homes in Menorca. According to recent data, 98.5% of home sales currently taking place in Menorca are not affordable for typical salaries. Only 1.5% of people can access them. It is not that homes are not being sold; it is that prices have spiralled out of control, and it will be difficult to rationalise them if the enormous tourist demand continues.

A large part of the younger generations on the island have their life projects on hold because they cannot access housing. There is increasing overcrowding in homes, and substandard housing is being used as permanent residences. This is not progress; it is regression.

For these reasons, on Saturday 13 June we will protest in front of the Island Council, at Plaça Biosfera in Maó, at 7:30 p.m. Do not miss it. Menorca needs to redirect some of its paths.