Propuesta de participación ciudadana en medidas post-cierre de frontera

The mayor of La Línea La Concepción (Cádiz), Juan Franco, announced the progress of the memorandum that the Municipal Council will publish in the future regarding the measures that will be implemented after the conclusion of the border with Gibraltar, so that citizens can consult and propose additions to it. This will be subsequently and formally sent to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Entitled «Strategic Memorandum of La Línea de la Concepción for a transversal and sustainable integration,» the document aims to identify «the challenges that the city will face» with the elimination of land border controls with Gibraltar and proposes measures to transform this transformation «into an opportunity for development,» as indicated by the local council.

This statement has a political and technical nature and is presented as a «living and open» document that will allow citizen participation through contributions sent to an email activated for this purpose. In addition, a survey on social networks will be proposed to gather the opinions of citizens on municipal approaches and meetings with groups directly affected by the changes.

The document raises the dilemma of dealing with the disappearance of the physical border without specific measures or with them. In the first scenario, the line «could face the loss of the active population, the escape of consumers, the saturation of public services, and a possible loss of urban identity,» among the issues highlighted by the local council.

To avoid these risks, a series of structural, urban, fiscal, and social measures are proposed, including the creation of a special economic area, a logistics terminal, a specific housing plan, and financing mechanisms.

The mayor mentioned that this scenario opens up «a new city model» that will change the urban geography, with «120,000 inhabitants from two territories with different legal situations and 36,000 square meters of habits in limbo.» Therefore, he emphasized the importance of «promoting actions in strategic lands and homes to prepare for these changes.»

Among the fiscal proposals, Franco mentioned the possibility of requesting the exclusion of the non-operation jurisdiction classification in the ministerial order, which would eliminate the imposition of double taxation.

Additionally, a funding system is proposed that compensates the local council for its floating population, mostly foreign, to whom service is provided without being registered in the city. In this regard, a campaign will be launched to encourage community residents to formalize their registration.

Regarding mobility, the memorandum takes into account the need to serve the population of Gibraltar with the possible creation of the Algeciras-Nerja coast, which would include a rail branch. Currently, as mentioned, the city is the only one in Europe with over 100,000 inhabitants without a railway connection.

In the social field, it is proposed to strengthen social services, health, and education through a bilateral agreement that guarantees future pensions for cross-border workers, in addition to measures for the protection of minors and victims of gender violence.

Common waste treatment, use of sports facilities, creation of new academic diplomas in collaboration with the Andalusian and Gibraltar University Centers, and a budgetary framework that allows the extension of municipal services are also proposed.

Starting from Monday, June 23, the Municipal Council will provide citizens with the memorandum on its website and activate a Facebook survey to gather opinions on topics related to mobility, commerce, housing, and other key issues. The aim is to «consolidate or modify municipal approaches based on the contributions received.»

This process aims to make the line «more resilient to the upcoming changes, promoting participatory management and a comprehensive strategy that ensures the progress of people’s thinking,» as the mayor stated.

He also explained that, in addition to presenting the document, the Municipal Council continues to demand «a direct interlocutor with the Government of Spain» to address issues that «transcend the powers of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in a scenario that requires special attention.»

FUENTE