During the coming months, other similar measures will be enacted by other governments in Catalonia and all around the Spanish state that will share the same goal: reduce spending to avoid putting at risk our welfare state.
In Sitges, we were also forced to implement adjustments and contain expenses in our City Hall. We did it as soon as we had access to the municipal government and we found ourselves immersed in a very critical financial situation. And we must do it during the Municipal Budget for 2012, prepared in accordance with our electoral commitments that stressed austerity and cost containment.
The reduction of the 67 million € deficit that burdens our municipal finances is one of the main challenges of the government of the New Majority. In this sense, the work carried out by Jordi Mas is pure financial engineering, and it is based on a gradual reduction of deficit that will not affect the provision of essential services or our competitiveness.
To address this deficit, the municipal government is reducing spending in different chapters. We understand that this involves sacrifices. This is the message that we relayed to the municipal workers' representatives, we needed to explain to them the plan to save 1.9 million € in Chapter 1 of the municipal budget, in other words, the Chapter corresponding to the staff of the City Hall. For now, the reduction of salaries of elected officials and managers and the elimination of positions of trust has already allowed annual savings of 400,000€.
Last week, we announced the closure of Centre Obert El Rusc (Open Center El Rusc). The maintenance of a service with such a low usage was financially unsustainable due to our current deficit. During the last week, it was also discussed in sectorial meetings the necessary spending cuts in the Chapter of Festivities, just as the cuts in municipal subsidies. We must act together, with imagination and without losing hope, we must be responsible and skilled enough to design festivities that keep their essence and cultural projection, but with lower budgets than during previous years. I think this is possible, because I do believe in the responsibility and appreciation for our celebrations and traditions of the inhabitants of Sitges, many of which devote many hours of their time in such tasks.
President Mas declared past Saturday in Sitges, where he attended the workshops on the Health Plan 2011-15, that nothing will be the way it was before. And he's entirely right. Probably, the growth we've had during our immediate past was above our means. And now, we have no choice but to steer out of the current situation. If we did not do it, in addition to act in an irresponsible manner, we would not be able to guarantee our welfare state and a balanced society. This is our commitment.
