"9 in 10” tells us two things

Spain’s narrative of dependency on mass tourism might finally have some chinks in its armour for the first time in twenty years.

Well, in case you missed it, there has been some curiously good news for Spain that may have more implications than certain groups would like. As we have seen in the UK, to the delight of workers and the dismay of right-wing liberals and Guardian readers who like cheap Romanian au pairs, a tightened labour market has led not to the end of the world but to exactly what evil Brexiteers (and any decent Trade Unionist since Keir Hardie) said it would lead to: higher wages and improving conditions.

Here in Spain, the picture is also improving. Nine out of every ten jobs lost in the pandemic have been recovered – although, from a negative perspective, this merely shows just what an absolutely car crash the Spanish economy was before the pandemic (clearly, there weren’t many jobs to be recovered!). And Spain's non-existent birth-rate is a testament to the stagnant malaise in this country.

However, it also shows something that many people desperately don’t want to be true. Namely that the Spanish economy could be something greater than a tourist dump. People in Spain have been told it is inevitable that swathes of their major cities must be turned over to Airbnb because “the economy”, seemingly ignoring that if your economic boon makes it impossible for people to have children, it’s actually a cancer not a boon.

So now, with tourism still nowhere near the levels it was, it seems that the Spanish economy has in fact been able to adapt far more quickly and to create jobs that don’t require handing over family homes to property speculators. I won’t be holding my breath but maybe, just maybe, Spain’s narrative of dependency on mass tourism might finally have some chinks in its armour for the first time in twenty years.