Monday, April 16, 2012

The Spanish nautical enterprise says "enough!"

Industry and the Spanish nautical companies have teamed up again to ask the Spanish Government to implement the proposition of law to stimulate the activity of recreational sailing passed last year in the Development Commission of the Congress of Deputies. This will happen at a meeting with the media to be held on the 17th of April at the Madrid headquarters of the CEOE and where representatives of the major employers and associations of our country will take part to explain what the sector needs to overcome the deep crisis in which it finds itself.
With the favorable votes of the Socialist and Popular groups, the Development Commission of the Congress of Deputies approved on the 9th of March last year a proposition of law to promote the activity of recreational boating in our country. The initiative, promoted through the dialogue through ANEN with the parliamentary groups and supported by the Spanish Maritime Cluster, has urged the Government to make a definitive commitment to continue promoting recreational boating in Spain with specific rules that are simplified and harmonized in accordance with our European neighbors, as well as to study a more balanced and competitive fiscal treatment.

Presented by the socialist group and advocated on its behalf by the national deputy, Rafael Simancas, the proposal set as its objective "the support of representatives of the Spanish people towards an important economic and social activity, as recreational boating is an activity with extraordinary potential both in economical and social terms, and above all when it comes to generation of employment in our country."

A year later nothing has changed and the Spanish enterprise has rolled up the sleeves to say 'enough' to the Government and to ask it to keep its promise a while ago by the Popular Party, represented by the National Deputy Montesinos de Miguel, who voted favorably on this initiative stating "I hope these are not just empty gestures, but involve a real commitment that will materialize in an overall government policy aimed at developing the sector, a harmonization of the fiscal policy in line with our neighbors, a reduction of red tape and of course the promotion and development of marine industry and sport in Spain, including it in the programs of R & D and export."

CLAIMS FROM THE BUSINESS SECTOR

The stand of the National Association of Marine Enterprises (ANEN) at the Barcelona Boat Show 2011 served as a platform to unite practically all nautical organizations in our country, which joined their voices to make a demand to the regional administrations and in particular the government "that from the election results would materialize a fiscal policy to avoid the collapse of the sector and stop penalizing an activity capable of stimulating the economy and employment."

A year after this direct message to the decision makers, the urgent appeal to the central government and regional administrations to include in their fiscal and legislative measures support for the marine industry, the claim will be repeated on Tuesday the 17th of April by the National Association of Marine Enterprises (ANEN), along with the major yachting and sports organizations, as well as the entities most representative of the nautical sector and Spanish businessmen, calling for specific and favorable legislation that leads inexorably towards the abolition of the registration tax for the acquisition of pleasure craft.

As the spokesmen of this new claim emphasized, Spain is the only country with a double taxation on the purchase of yachts: the 18% VAT + 12% of registration tax (for vessels over 8 meters in length). A situation that "leaves our industry defenseless against international markets," the Spanish employers claim, and demand also the suppression of the registration tax for the charter boats over 15 m.

To defend these historical claims, business organizations remind the multiplier effect of recreational boating on national employment, which is 7%, not a negligible figure in these times of economic crisis and real need of job creation.

Therefore, the spokesmen of this new claim - the National Association of Marine Enterprises (ANEN), the Mediterranean Yacht Broker Association (MYBA), the Spanish Association of Super Yachts (AEGY) and the Association of Nautical Businesses in the Balearics (AENB), are offering the government concrete proposals to improve the sector, most notably the draft of a General Law of Recreational Navigation and the standardization of the taxation of the Spanish nautical sector in line with the rest of Europe.

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