Nautica - Asociación de Empresas Náuticas de Baleares

Distinguished authorities, dear comrades, good evening.
First, I thank all the boat operators here today for finding space in your diary to be together, talk about our problems and how we can together, sharing our experiences, prepare for 2010 that will be as hard as 2009 has been for our industry.

I also personally thank and welcome, if you'll let me, the Authorities who have made a space in their busy schedule to share with us at this important evening.
 

Joana Barceló, newly appointed Regional Minister for Tourism, and well known by the association for his work at the Ministry of Labor and Training. We believe that the appointment of Joana Barceló for this portfolio is a wise decision in regard to seamanship, for he knows our industry and in 2009 was kind enough to attend the first General Assembly of the Maritime Cluster of the Balearic Islands, Which is one of our Association's founding members.

Mr Francisca Vives, consellera of Commerce, Industry and Energy. His advice is crucial to our business. Almost everything we do is controlled by this conselleria. And we depend on it moments of crisis.
 
Mr Jaume Carbonero, Regional Minister for Public Works, with important work contributed to the entity, Ports of the Balearic Islands. This year they receive our award to the organization that has collaborated with the industry most.
 
Mr Francs Triay, President of the Port Authority.also very important for nautical activities and we especially thank him for his loyalty Because he always has been with us at these events.
 
Also with us is the director general of the Department of Planning Llorens Pou, With whom we work very hard to realize the National Reference Center in Nautical Mahon. There are many expectations placed by the sector in this specific training center for navigation.
 
We welcome Capitan de Maritimo  Mr. Scales, director of the APB Mr. Angel Matias and Inspectors Mr Ronaldo Narvaez  and Mr. Eduardo Comas.
 
Also with us, CAEB president, Josep Oliver, President of the Chamber of Commerce de Mallorca, Joan de Torrella Gual.
 
President of fairs and Congress, Mr. Pere Perelló, and the director of the Palma Boat Show, Xema Sanz.
 
And finally Alejandro Landaluce our national association representing ANEN and Tomeu Bestard as president of the Balearic Boating Federation.
 
With the permission of Tomeu Bestard, and on behalf of the entire marine industry, I take the opportunity of the presence of Joana Barceló to ask that the Ministry of Tourism will continue to support the sector through initiatives such as those developed in 2009 as the Hanseboot presence of the Balearic Islands in Hamburg, where we were 'Guest Region', or the cooking show I was invited at to the Fitur in Madrid last January. In fact it was the first time sailing was represented by the sector's main tourism fair in Spain.
 
I would also hope that the new Regional Minister for Tourism understood the potential of sailing in the Balearics. Not only from the tourist side, such as the charter or scuba diving. They also generate tourism enterprises engaged in the repair and maintenance of recreational craft.
These activities should be considered very important for our economic fabric and be promoted, since they operate  during the winter months and could be a key to combating the seasonality in the Balearic Islands, one of the main problems of this autonomous region. For each vessel that is repaired, a whole crew can enjoy the food, culture and leisure activities that take place on the island.
 
The consellera of Commerce Francesca Vives, who also very kindly shared with us this wish to convey the importance for our companies to attend nautical fairs that are held in the rest of the Spanish state and Europe. For our companies it is very expensive to attend these fairs, the island is indeed a significant increase in costs and makes us less competitive than those based in the Peninsula. That is why we need your help.

We also need assistance to attend the Palma Boat Show. Through agreements with the Department of Commerce, last year sector companies got a subsidy of 50% to be present in the fair and hopefully in the next edition we will also have that

Councillor Jaume Carbonero, we ask him to keep the strategic lines that have been carried out in Ports and most importantly, to continue relying on the sector.
 
And councilors and the Council body as representative of the Balearic Government, I would ask you to help us in a very serious issue for us and one that is contributing to the collapse of the pleasure boat registrations in Spain. From here, we ask for help to lower or eliminate the matriculation tax which is responsible for autonomous recovery, Because it does enormous damage to our business. And not just our marine industry, also to the whole economy of the islands because it causes many potential customers to choose other places to buy and register their vessels. 

In this line of containment of taxes, we appreciate the decision of President of the Balearic Islands Port Authority, Francesc Triay to freeze and, in some cases cut rates. Although I must also say that they forgot about the fee to companies to be registered and to work in the sector, which is a double burden because they also pay IAE. From here, we ask that they be revised downwards.
 
The Nautical Association of Balearic recognize and appreciate what we consider a milestone for the industry: the effort of the Chamber of Commerce of Mallorca, Ports de les Illes Balears, the APB and the Ministry of Tourism and Commerce to enhance and promote the nautical sector by attending the most important fairs in Europe.
 
Still, as recently written in the British magazine 'Boat International', "Madrid is too far from the sea." I would add that perhaps that is the reason that many of our problems remain unresolved.
 
I hope you're enjoying the event and lets move on to the awards ceremony.