The controversy over sun loungers and umbrellas on Formentera's beaches has exposed significant internal tensions within the Balearic Government's Department of the Sea and Water Cycle, according to comments made by the department's head, Juan Manuel Lafuente, during a session of the Balearic Parliament.

Lafuente was questioned on September 9 about the dismissal of María Joaquina Ferrer as Director General of Coasts and Littoral, which took place while the administration was dealing with the disputed authorisations for seasonal beach installations on Formentera.

While Lafuente denied that Ferrer's removal was linked to external pressure or to any specific case, he acknowledged that the Formentera file had created "significant tension" within his department.

The admission has added another chapter to a dispute that has already involved conflicting technical interpretations, political accusations, staff departures and a substantial change in the number of beach installations ultimately authorised.

Lafuente Denies the Dismissal Was Linked to Formentera

Questioned by MÉS per Mallorca deputy Maria Ramon, Lafuente said the appointment and dismissal of a director general is ultimately the responsibility of the person who makes the appointment.

He presented Ferrer's removal as an internal management decision intended to give the Directorate General of Coasts and Littoral a "new impetus".

According to the minister, the objectives included improving communication with municipalities, better planning of temporary coastal authorisations and stronger internal coordination.

Lafuente insisted that the decision was taken by the department without external pressure and was not the consequence of any particular administrative file.

He also maintained that the resolutions issued by the department during the current legislature had complied with the applicable legislation and with the technical and legal reports produced by the administration.

MÉS Questions Why a Director Following Technical Criteria Was Removed

Ramon challenged that explanation in Parliament, arguing that Ferrer's approach had been supported by the department's own technical staff.

She referred to a letter signed by 21 officials from the Directorate General of Coasts and Littoral following Ferrer's dismissal.

According to Ramon's account, the officials stated that the former director had acted in accordance with technical reports, legal criteria and the applicable regulations.

The MÉS deputy therefore questioned why a director who, in her interpretation, had followed the administration's technical and legal criteria had been removed.

She also said the officials' letter referred to other disagreements between technical assessments and political decisions beyond the Formentera case.

MÉS has consequently requested access to all the coastal administration files processed during the current legislative period in order to determine whether similar clashes have occurred elsewhere.

Political Allegations Over Economic Interests

Ramon went further during the parliamentary exchange, asking how often technical criteria may have conflicted with political considerations and questioning whether economic interests had been given precedence over the public interest.

She also referred to Ferrer's earlier role in reporting an alleged €20,000 bribery attempt.

The former director had been publicly recognised by the administration several months before her dismissal after reporting the alleged attempt to bribe her.

Ramon criticised the decision to replace Ferrer with what she described as a politically aligned profile and ultimately called for Lafuente's resignation.

These statements represent the political opposition's allegations and interpretation of events. They do not establish that the dismissal was caused by political pressure or economic interests.

Lafuente Acknowledges Significant Internal Tension

In his response, Lafuente repeated that the Formentera and other coastal files had been processed according to the law and the relevant technical reports.

He also rejected the suggestion that he had intervened in individual administrative decisions.

However, during the same intervention, he made an important acknowledgement.

Lafuente described the Formentera case as a "very complex" file and admitted that it had created significant tension within his department.

He maintained that his own involvement had been limited to ensuring that administrative procedures were completed within the required timeframe and in accordance with technical advice.

The admission provides the clearest acknowledgement so far from the department's leadership that the Formentera case generated internal friction.

The Dispute Began With a Major Reduction in Requested Beach Installations

The controversy centres on Formentera's seasonal beach installations for the 2026-2029 period.

The Consell de Formentera originally requested authorisation for 1,960 sun loungers and 980 umbrellas distributed across beaches around the island, together with other facilities including water-sports equipment and services related to beach safety and accessibility.

The initial decision taken by the Directorate General of Coasts and Littoral in May authorised substantially fewer installations.

The reduction affected more than one third of what had originally been requested.

The decision was based in part on coastal planning criteria concerning distances from the shoreline and dune systems.

The Consell subsequently challenged part of the decision.

The Procedure Was Reopened

The dispute escalated further when the Balearic Government decided to reverse part of the procedural process and reopen the file.

The decision followed an appeal by the Consell and criticism that the island administration had not been given an adequate opportunity to comment before the original decision was issued.

The procedure was therefore sent back to an earlier stage, allowing the Consell to present additional arguments and modified plans.

The development coincided with the removal of Ferrer and the appointment of Joan Jaume Mulet as the new Director General of Coasts and Littoral.

Final Authorisation Restored Almost All of the Requested Loungers

The subsequent review produced a dramatically different outcome.

After Formentera modified the location and configuration of some installations and adjusted occupied areas, the new Costas administration authorised 1,900 sun loungers and 950 umbrellas.

That represents almost 97% of the original request.

The final decision was therefore considerably more permissive than the original May ruling, although some installations remained excluded.

The authorised arrangement covers beaches and coastal locations including Cala Saona, Cavall d'en Borràs, Illetes, Llevant, Es Pujols, Es Caló, Es Copinyar, Arenals, Migjorn and Estany des Peix.

Certain installations in Illetes remained excluded, while a proposed kiosk-bookshop in Es Copinyar was also rejected.

New Interpretation Behind the Final Decision

The final resolution also introduced changes in the interpretation of the rules governing some of the disputed installations.

The current administration considered individual proposals in light of coastal regulations, environmental protection requirements and public access to the beaches.

Certain installations associated with safety, rescue services, first aid and accessibility were considered to have a public-interest justification.

Some areas for sun loungers and umbrellas were also authorised after modifications to their configuration, location or occupied surface.

In certain places, installations were required to be arranged in a single row and adapted to the physical characteristics of the beach.

Lafuente Says the Final Result Was Not Politically Different

During the parliamentary debate, Lafuente sought to counter the opposition's criticism by comparing the final Formentera decision with decisions taken under previous governments.

He argued that the final adjustment was broadly consistent with the type of reduction that had previously been applied under earlier left-wing administrations in similar circumstances.

His position is that the current government did not abandon the regulatory criteria, but applied them in a way that ultimately produced a smaller reduction than the original decision.

The opposition disputes that interpretation and has focused instead on the change in criteria and the timing of the change.

Twenty-One Officials Raised Concerns

The role of the 21 officials has become one of the most politically sensitive aspects of the dispute.

The officials' letter was presented by the opposition as evidence that there was concern within the administration over Ferrer's removal and the handling of coastal matters.

Earlier in the summer, several senior figures within the Directorate General of Coasts and Littoral also left or announced their intention to leave their positions following the change in leadership.

Those developments transformed what had initially been an administrative dispute over beach installations into a wider political controversy over how coastal decisions are being made inside the Balearic Government.

The administration, however, has maintained that the personnel changes and the change of director were management decisions rather than consequences of a specific authorisation.

Formentera's Beaches Became the Centre of a Wider Political Fight

The number of sun loungers and umbrellas ultimately authorised is only one part of the controversy.

The case has raised broader questions about the balance between commercial beach services, public access, environmental protection and the application of coastal regulations.

Formentera's beaches are among the island's most important tourism assets, but they are also environmentally sensitive areas subject to strict coastal and ecological rules.

The original reduction therefore generated concern among the Consell and affected businesses, while environmental and technical considerations were cited in support of some of the restrictions.

The subsequent reversal created the opposite reaction, with critics questioning why installations that had initially been rejected could later be authorised after a change in leadership.

No Evidence Has Established Political Interference

Despite the intensity of the political debate, an important distinction remains.

Lafuente has explicitly denied that Ferrer's dismissal was caused by external pressure or by the Formentera file.

The existence of internal disagreement and the timing of the personnel changes do not, by themselves, establish that political interference took place.

Similarly, the opposition's allegations that economic interests influenced the administration have not been established as findings by a court or other independent authority.

What is confirmed is that the case generated significant internal tension, that 21 officials signed a letter defending the former director's approach, that the director was removed during the wider dispute and that the final authorisation was substantially different from the initial decision.

MÉS Requests Access to Coastal Files

The controversy is now likely to continue beyond the Formentera case itself.

MÉS per Mallorca has formally requested access to all files handled by the Directorate General of Coasts and Littoral during the current legislative period.

The party says it wants to determine whether there have been other instances in which technical recommendations differed from subsequent political or administrative decisions.

The request could broaden the scrutiny from a single Formentera authorisation dispute into an examination of the department's wider decision-making practices.

A Controversy That Has Not Fully Disappeared

The immediate battle over Formentera's 2026-2029 beach installations has effectively been resolved administratively, with almost all of the requested sun loungers and umbrellas ultimately authorised.

The political consequences, however, remain.

The dismissal of María Joaquina Ferrer, the intervention of the new director, the letter signed by 21 officials and Lafuente's admission that the Formentera file created significant internal tension have left questions about the department's handling of the case.

Lafuente continues to insist that the administration has acted within the law and according to technical and legal reports.

The opposition continues to question the reasons for the change in leadership and the shift between the original and final decisions.

Formentera's beaches may now have their seasonal installations in place, but the political dispute surrounding how those authorisations were reached is far from over.