June 5th, in the lounge of the Ministry of Industry the annual delivery of “Q”-Standards took place for the 174 Spanish beaches and 12 marinas that have passed the audits for “Q” Quality for Tourism, including previous recipients including the Real Club Náutico Club, a pioneer in Spain in nautical sports facilities obtaining this flag in 2010.The Minister of Industry, Energy and Tourism, José Manuel Soría chaired this event and was accompanied by the Secretary of State for Tourism, Elizabeth Borrego, and the president of ICTE, Miguel Mirones. A total of 82 municipalities from 9 autonomous provinces, received the flag from the distinctive hand of the Minister, certifying that 173 beaches and 12 Water sport facilities have met the quality standards associated with the mark “Q “Quality Tourism, established by the UNE in each sector.The Communitat Valencian ranks second with 46 flags, from which, Torrevieja has won four: the RCNT, The Castaways Beach, Cala Pitera and Playa Cabo de Cervera.The UNE 187001 for beaches is associated with the mark “Q”, like the rest of the tourism sector UNE. It identifies the requirements to be met by a beach to participate in the Management System for Public Use of Beaches. These relate both to the equipment as to cleanliness, safety, lifesaving, information, etc. The 12 nautical sports facilities, certified under UNE 188004, received hereby the “Q”-Mark, which certifies them as guarantors of a quality system. This policy first was  implemented two years ago and during 2011 10 yacht clubs have been certified, 6 of them in Galicia.To assess compliance with the UNE, the tourism sector worked with expert auditors AENOR APPLUS, Bureau Veritas, Lloyd’s Register, OCA Cert, SGS and TUV Rheinland, to assess and report on the status of companies and tourism organizations, issuing a subsequent report that was studied by the Institute’s Certification Committee, which awarded the Brand “Q”.The Institute for Touristic Quality, the agency responsible for granting the trademark “Q”, is a private certification office, specially created in 2000 for quality development in the tourism industry, its members are the organisations most important tourist business in our country. It also has the participation of the Ministry of Tourism, Autonomous Regions and the Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces.