The policy of social support is one of the basic pillars of the municipal government of the New Majority. In Sitges, beyond the delicate current socioeconomical situation, there are people suffering. Many more people that we often imagine, even considering the employment results made public last week, which shows that unemployment in the municipality is 9.5%, six points below the Catalan average, is a figure that injects hope, but we must not be conformists.
The actions, aimed at groups who suffer most and who need active support, should be a priority for the different administrations, even considering budget constraints and situations of drastic reductions. A good example is the announcement made last week by the Minister of Social Welfare and Family Affairs, Josep Lluis Cleries, in which he expressed his commitment to expand the number of potential places in nurseries for the elderly by 4500. That is, despite that the difficult context and poisoned inheritance received by previous governments (in the town and in the Catalan government) are forcing to redirect budgets and optimize services and benefits, the policies to support those most in need must be kept in the first level of institutional action.
How is this compatible, in a time when revenues have shrunk considerably, the country suffers from a serious budget deficit and the volume of service requests increases in proportion to the worsening economic situation? The equation is not easy to solve, but not impossible to apply. Imagination, financial balance and the willingness to serve can be a great combination to activate lines of social support.
The base of any institution planning involves the implementation of an action policy that considers the required austerity versus the provision of services. A good example of this principle is that Catalonia has doubled health expenditure during the last ten years, even though that population growth was only 20%. The figures indicate that institutional leaders must be precise in the administration of public resources and that people should be careful in their proper use. But it also shows that social policies and support for individuals and groups who suffer most should be a priority in governmental action. This is a principle assumed by the municipal government of Sitges.
I’ll take advantage of this opportunity to invite all the inhabitants of Sitges to the presentation of the Governance Plan, to be held on Thursday 20 October at 19.30 at Palau Maricel.
