Ministers met on Tuesday to finalise proposals aimed at addressing Spain's deepening housing crisis. Health Minister Mónica García said the measures would bring relief to more than five million people, citing a rolling over of rental contracts until 2028, stricter regulation of short-term and room rentals, and a ban on housing purchases by investment firms. The package must still be approved by parliament, where the leftist coalition government lacks a majority. The minority government, made up of the ruling Socialists and junior partner Sumar, has 30 days from the decree's publication to reach an agreement.
Protests erupted in Madrid, Barcelona, Seville, Malaga and Cadiz after the eviction of the elderly woman, with demonstrators calling for action on rising rents and affordability. García acknowledged the protests directly: "Thanks to the mobilisations and the encampments. Without you, this would not have been possible." The eviction and subsequent outcry have pushed housing policy to the top of the political agenda.
However, the proposals faced criticism from opposition politicians. Míriam Nogueras, spokeswoman for the pro-Catalan independence party Junts, told Spanish public broadcaster RTVE that the agreement lumped together "vulture funds" with small landlords who had invested their savings in property. "Lumping together in this category those who have invested their savings in a flat, a restaurant or a property ... putting them all in the same basket is a mistake," she said, warning that small landlords would be left "out in the cold."