Tavira council has managed to pay off in full the money it borrowed from the government to reconfigure its finances in 2013.
Well before the deadline, Tavira council has cleared its debt to the Programme of Support to the Local Economy (PAEL) by transferring €1,165,078.
The deadline for settlement was 2020 but the local authority said today that "the prepayment has allowed the municipality an annual interest saving of €180,000."
The council, led by socialist Jorge Botelho, achieved this payment "due mainly to the fact that the city council executive has endeavored to contain spending in recent years, allowing the sound financial health of the municipality to become a reality.”
The council used the loan to pay hundreds of invoices to local and regional suppliers which helped the local and regional economy, especially business owners who were able to maintain job levels, according to the upbeat press release from Tavira council.
The government's PAEL scheme was set up to help councils pay off monies owed for more than 90 days and has been used to good effect by many Algarve councils, some of which, like Tavira and Loulé, have paid off loans early due to their strict financial management.
Portimão council has been unable to use the PAEL fund as a positive or zero budget needs to be set before the emergency fund can be applied to.
At the last count, Portimão council owed €130 million with little hope of covering the interest bill, let alone paying back the capital sums borrowed during years of fiscal incompetence under mayor Manuel da Luz.
