British tourists will be forced to hand over sensitive information every time they visit Spain under a controversial new ‘Big Brother’ law.
The rules which apply from October require hoteliers to hand over tourists’ credit card numbers and contact details to police, local media has reported.
Bank account details and personal addresses may also be requested under the new legislation.
Currently hotels and apartment blocks make a copy of your passport or identity card which is passed onto officers.
The new law has been criticised within the Spanish tourist industry amid fears it could break privacy guidelines.
Hotels and sunbeds close to Levante beach in Benidorm, Spain
Thousands of Mallorcans turned out to protest against ‘overtourism’ on the island on July 21
Hoteliers have also said it will only create more work for already busy staff, and in Majorca meetings have been held between authorities and tourism bosses.
Meanwhile there are fears tourists may chose to go elsewhere if they do no want to hand over their personal details to police.
However, the Spanish government has defended the proposal, saying it will make the country safer.
The Interior Ministry said they wanted to know who was staying in hotel and apartment complexes across the country.
It comes as Spain has faced a wave of anti-tourism protests this summer with visitors in Barcelona even sprayed with water guns by protesters.
The mayor of the Catalan capital has also pledged to eliminate short-term tourist lets in the city within five years.
Tourists sunbathe on the beach in Benidorm, Spain
One demonstrator holds up a sign reading ‘stop speculation in housing, SOS residents’
Demonstrators hold a sign which reads ‘tourism yes, but not like that’ during the march in Palma
Pictured: Los Cristianos beach in Tenerife, the Canary Islands
A demonstrator holds a sign which reads ‘it’s not tourismphobia, it’s Mallorcan’ during the protest
Demonstrators are calling for changes to the tourism on Majorca, claiming the amount of foreign visitors is leaving the island struggling to cope
A Spanish woman with the words ‘tourists go home’ on a piece of paper attached to her shirt takes part in the protest
Mayor Jaume Collboni believes the move will make Barcelona more affordable for young people who have been forced out by soaring rents.
Rental prices in Barcelona have increased by around 70 per cent in the last decade, while the cost of buying a house has risen far more slowly at 39 per cent.
And in Majorca locals started a movement to ‘reclaim the beaches’ from tourists with demonstrations taking place over the summer.
One shocking video shows a woman sitting across a path leading down to the popular Caló des Moro cove while a local shouted at would-be tourists to ‘go, go, go!’
In another incident more than 200 activists descended on Caló des Moro – a favourite spot of social media influencers and regular tourists alike – to heckle any holidaymakers who dared to sunbathe or dip in the cool waters.
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
