Parliament dissolved in Spain after housing reform fails
In recent days, protests against high rental prices have been taking place across the entire country. It all started after an attempt to evict an 87-year-old woman in Madrid.
Parliament dissolved in Spain after housing reform failure
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has announced the dissolution of parliament and called early elections.
Last week, his government was defeated in a vote on measures to combat the housing crisis. Over the past week, this very crisis has become the main topic of the country's political life.
Right-wing parties blocked the government's measures against expensive housing.
In the parliamentary vote held on October 2, two emergency decrees of the government aimed at protecting tenants were considered. They proposed introducing a moratorium on evictions until 2030, as well as imposing restrictions on short-term housing rentals and renting out individual rooms. The conservative People's Party, the far-right Vox, and the Catalan Junts party opposed this. Explaining its position, the People's Party emphasized that the housing supply problem should be solved through new construction, not restrictions.
The parliamentary vote took place following nationwide protests held in defense of 87-year-old Maricarmen Abascal.
This woman had rented her apartment nearly 70 years ago. In 2018, the real estate where her apartment was located was purchased by an investment company called Urbagestión, which increased the rent price several times over. This amount was higher than the tenant's pension, yet she continued to pay the old price of 500 euros. The company tried to evict her from the apartment three times, but the court suspended the decision. On the fourth attempt, the woman was forcibly carried out of the house on a stretcher, after which she was hospitalized. Footage showing the elderly woman being forcibly evicted from her apartment caused a major public outcry. Following the protests that started in Madrid, she was allowed to continue living in the same apartment.
However, the situation did not calm down there: actions against high rent prices spread to other cities, becoming some of the largest protest demonstrations in recent times.
On October 3, demonstrations took place in about 50 cities, and according to the organizers, nearly 500,000 people participated in them. In Madrid alone, 70,000 people took to the streets.