The decision by the Motril Town Council to reject a call to make swimming where there is a red flag flying forbidden has drawn criticism.

The Spokesperson for Andalucía Por Sí, David Martín, reminded the governing party that this move is one strongly urged by the town’s lifeguards, whose lives are put at risk every time somebody ignores the red-flag warning.

However, it was not only the ruling party, the PSOE, who opposed the motion, but also the Partido Andalucista, Partido Popular and Izquierda Unida, who jointly consider that such a move would damage the town’s tourism image on social media.

The said Spokesperson had scathing criticism for the PP, who, he pointed out, had called for more stringent measures in Murcia for precisely this reason, where bathing in such conditions already earns you a fine of between 600 and 3,000 euros.

He pointed out the local bylaws were already in place in other tourism-orientated municipalities all over Spain, such as Gran Canaria, Estepona, Rincón de la Victoria and Nijar and Almeria, amongst others.

(News: Motril, Costa Tropical, Granada, Andalucia)