The President of the Government begins his seventh consecutive visit to La Mareta, in Costa Teguise, with new surveillance cameras and the closure of El Ancla beach due to bacteria. The AUGC denounces lack of planning and outdated allowances.
Pedro Sánchez will arrive next week in Lanzarote to enjoy his family holidays at La Mareta, the National Heritage residence located in Costa Teguise. It is the seventh consecutive year that the President of the Government has chosen the island for his summer break, but this time he will do so with extraordinary protection. Security teams have installed several additional temporary cameras in the days leading up to his arrival, expanding the control perimeter of the site throughout his stay.
The privacy of the leader has also been enhanced by an unexpected closure. El Ancla beach, located just a few meters from the residence, was closed to bathers last Wednesday after water quality tests detected elevated levels of the bacteria Escherichia coli. Public Health will need to conduct further tests to confirm that the water meets the appropriate conditions, leaving the area free of bathers during the first days of the presidential holidays.
Sánchez travels accompanied by up to seven service assistants, according to the Transparency Portal, and will have a security detail made up of between 30 and 50 Civil Guard agents. Once again, this operation has caused discomfort among agents dispatched from other islands. The Unified Association of Civil Guards (AUGC) in the Canary Islands denounces that the organization of the operation continues to be marked by improvisation.
“We face it like every year. Without knowing who has to go, where they will stay, or if they will be advanced their allowances,” explains Juan Couce, spokesperson for the AUGC in the Canary Islands. The union representative argues that the lack of planning depends on Madrid and that agents receive notice with very little time to organize a trip during peak season, when finding accommodation in Lanzarote is particularly challenging.
The association criticizes that the allowance system has been outdated since 2002. “With less than 80 euros, you cannot find accommodation,” Couce states. The AUGC proposes that the Presidency of the Government directly manage the accommodation of the mobilized personnel, rather than having the agents themselves advance money from their pockets or search for a hotel in the middle of August. “What they should do is pay for the hotel for all these people and then cover their meals. Because finding accommodation in Lanzarote in August is unfeasible,” insists the spokesperson.
This year, the deployment occurs in a particularly delicate context for the head of the Executive. Sánchez faces his holidays while the Government remains affected by judicial investigations involving his wife, Begoña Gómez, and by corruption accusations against his party. Despite this, the President maintains his annual appointment with Lanzarote, a tradition that has made the island his recurring holiday destination.
The La Mareta residence, built in the 1970s and ceded to National Heritage, has witnessed Sánchez's summer stays since 2019. The site, which has direct access to the beach, has become a media focal point every summer. The residents of Costa Teguise and the tourists who frequent the area have become accustomed to the presence of security agents and access restrictions during these weeks.
For the Canarians, the President's arrival means increased security in the area, but also a reminder of the logistical shortcomings faced by the deployed police forces. The AUGC insists that the solution lies in better coordination from the Presidency of the Government, to prevent agents from having to cover their accommodation costs during one of the most expensive times of the year on the island.
For now, Sánchez will enjoy his holidays with the peace of mind provided by the enhanced surveillance and the accidental closure of the nearby beach. Public Health analyses will determine when bathing can resume, but until then, the President's privacy is more guaranteed than ever.
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