Cacerolada against the F1 Grand Prix

Over the last three years the Valencia government has spent around 140 million euros on the F1 Grand Prix celebration.

“Too fast, too ruinous”. This is the text on a huge banner flying yesterday at a short distance to the Valencia F1 urban circuit. There, a group of about 200 indignados (outraged) demonstrated with a great cacerolada (saucepan-banging) against the public money spent on this event. Over the last three years, Valencia´s government has spent about 140 millions euros on the race celebration.

In turn, the autonomic administration reassures that Valencia´s society has got an economical impact of 158 millions euros, although does not specify what the benefits consisted of or how have they been calculated. The place chosen for the indignados to demonstrate was the most touristic entry of the circuit, the one that gets to the race from the maritime promenade and the restaurants of Malvarrosa beach. The time chosen coincided with the massive arrival of the spectators: one o´clock in the afternoon. Therefore hundreds of tourists could take pictures of the protest and listen to the slogans shouted by the demonstrators: “The urban circuit is paid for by the citizens”. There was even place for other demands like the banner carried by a 50 year old woman: “Violence is the education system and the barrack huts”, meaning the pre-built classrooms where thousands of students have to study in Valencia due to the lack of funds for building new schools.

The indignados also took with them to the maritime promenade a collection of cardboard cars used to parody the F1 grand prix. The demonstration is one of the activities organized by the indignados of Valencia´s villages’ assemblies, whom over the weekend celebrated a camping in one of the most diminished squares of the city, a kilometre away from the circuit. Concerts, workshops, and assemblies are celebrated there, as a protest to contrast the race´s luxury against the lack of funding in the area.

The numbers of the circuit.

The European F1 Grand Prix has been taken place in Valencia since 2008. The government built a circuit in the harbour which cost around 85 millions euros. The Valencia government specified that the cost would be none as when the area would be built up, development companies would pay a plus in order to build houses. The government also accepts the annual cost of the canon which is around 18 millions euros, according to Jorge Martinez Aspar (Valmor partner; private company in charge of setting up and dismantling the event).

According to the government, the grand prix means “a global impact ( building industry + running the event) greater than 158 millions euros for Valencia in only three years. It is also worth mentioning that 6.284 jobs have been created between the building and the celebration of three editions of this event, witnessed by almost 285.000 espectators”. Valencia´s administration emphasizes the powerful advertisement for the city: “An F1 grand prix has an average share of 600 millions espectators. 150 TV channels of 188 countries of the 5 continents live the races. Around 1.000 journalists from all over the world, come to Valencia to cover the event”.

The Valencia government declare that the economical benefits data have been thoroughly studied by the IVIE (Valencia´s college of economical research) although from the Economical department state that it is not possible to publish the document with the detailed breakdown of such benefits.

The original article can be seen here.