Ayuso ‘sells’ Madrid in London after the FT’s criticism of Colau’s Barcelona

Second chained institutional visit of the president of the Madrid’s community, Isabel Diaz Ayusoto an investment destination that has targeted the Barcelona of There is Colau. The regional president starts the week in Londonwhere he will maintain a busy schedule of meetings with authorities, businessmen and bankers just a few days after the publication in the prestigious British newspaper Financial Times of an extensive report that illustrates the decline suffered by the Ciudad Condal as a consequence of the policies of its mayoress, who qualifies as “populist”.

The trip follows the one that Díaz Ayuso made to Israel on February 12, when Colau’s unilateral decision to break institutional relations with the country was still hot, considering that his government systematically violates the human rights of the Palestinian population. A decision criticized by practically all of the opposition in the consistory.

attract investment

The report of Financial Times speaks of a “disoriented” Barcelona and with the economic sphere affected due to both the flight of companies (more than 8,000 companies have moved their headquarters outside of Catalonia due to the effects of the process) as well as the decrease in investment from abroad.

Precisely, the search for these investments is one of the main elements that will take Díaz Ayuso to the British capital, one of the neuralgic points of investment throughout the world, despite the effects that the United Kingdom’s departure from the European Union (Brexit) has had for London.

The president of the region that houses the capital of Spain plans to meet with the head of Microsoft in Europe, Cindy Roseto discuss future investments in the Community of Madrid and advances in digitization.

The American multinational co-founded by Bill Gates y Paul Allen has made a strong commitment to Barcelona by locating one of its major centers in Europe in the city.

Investment banks and funds

The regional president’s agenda also includes meetings with investors such as funds Blackstone y CVC and banks like Citi, Societe Generale y Santander UK.

Another of the objectives is to strengthen institutional relations with the United Kingdom, an aspect that has also deteriorated in the case of Barcelona, ​​according to the aforementioned article, signed by the correspondent of the British newspaper in the Iberian Peninsula, Barney Jopson.

The focus of tourism

A fundamental aspect in this regard is tourism, which the Community of Madrid has been promoting for some time to make its capital one of the favorite destinations, especially for Europeans.

As opposed, FT confirms in the report that the deterioration of Barcelona, ​​caused by factors such as dirt and the notable increase in unsafetythe obvious attractions of the city such as the climate, architecture and gastronomy had diminished.

In addition, the numerous policies against the arrival of tourists by the Barcelona’s town hall It has sometimes generated discomfort in the United Kingdom, one of the European countries that exports the most visitors to the rest of the Old Continent.

The first Barcelona councilor has not hidden her position against the massive arrival of tourists and has not hesitated to promote measures against the granting of hotel licenses or the proliferation of tourist apartmentsin addition to being one of the authorities that has most strongly opposed the expansion of the airport Josep Tarradellas Barcelona-El Prat.

“Enemy of the company”

One of the meetings that Díaz Ayuso plans to hold is with Rajesh Agrawah, the chairman of London & Partners, an official agency tasked with promoting investment and tourism in London. Agrawah is also Co-Chairman of the London Economic Action Partnership (LEAP), an entity tasked with promoting economic growth and employment in the City by connecting entrepreneurs to learn about various business opportunities.

In the aforementioned report Financial Timesconsidered as “the Bible” of the financial world, especially in Europe, mentions the perception that Catalan businessmen have of Colau as an “enemy of the freedom of business and growth”, which has contributed to exhausting the positive spirit and the impulse received by the Ciudad Condal from the 1992 Olympic Games.

take advantage of rejection

from some business circles of the capital of Spain, the visit of Díaz Ayuso to a benchmark investor such as London is positively valued, although it is recalled that it was scheduled well in advance of the publication of the article.

However, they do not consider the fact that he has prioritized London, like Israel, as the destination for his latest institutional visits, to be entirely coincidental. “You have to go where the money and opportunities are. And if others reject them, you have to take advantage of it; On this point, the president’s opinion is very similar to ours,” they point out.

The leader of the People’s Partywho chairs the conservative formation in the Community of Madrid, is a candidate to revalidate his mandate in the regional government in the next regional elections and the latest polls published point to a comfortable victory, even close to an absolute majority.