Spain's Congress has rejected a series of measures aimed at tackling the country's housing crisis, in a defeat for the government of Pedro Sánchez that increases pressure on him to call a snap election. Lawmakers voted on two decree-laws presented by the government in response to nationwide protests that have followed the eviction of an 87-year-old woman, Maricarmen Abascal, from her home. The decrees, which introduced a series of initiatives aimed at protecting tenants in the rental market, required parliamentary approval in order to remain in place.
MPs rejected the first decree by 178 votes to 172 and voted against the second by 184 to 166. Hundreds of demonstrators had gathered outside Congress as the debate took place and there were angry scenes. Protesters chanted "shame on you" and "your profits, our misery", after the results were announced.
The government's defeat underlines the fact that Sánchez, a Socialist, does not command a congressional majority and it has heightened speculation that he might call an early general election, which was not due until next summer. Sources told Spanish media that the government would spend the weekend deciding its next step, and whether to dissolve parliament. Sánchez's beleaguered government had already been mired in a series of scandals and judicial cases affecting his Socialist Party and close allies.
Abascal was evicted after she was unable to pay a sharp rent increase introduced by Urbagestión, the company that owned her flat in central Madrid. Hundreds of protesters gathered to oppose the eviction last week and the case triggered a broader movement across the country demanding affordable rentals, which have soared in recent years. The social backlash has seen Urbagestión negotiate the return of Abascal to her flat on a low rent.
However, protests have continued, with people occupying squares in Madrid and other cities, pitching tents in squares and with a series of marches scheduled for this weekend. The Sindicato de Inquilinas (Tenants' Union) activist association which has been co-ordinating protests, announced during the congressional debate that it was abandoning the tent protest in central Madrid. It said it wanted to "take the struggle to all the neighbourhoods, residential blocks and homes of Madrid, wherever there are rental increases, expulsions and abuses each day, and turn the energy of the last few days into a permanent organisation".
Protesters are also calling for a general strike over the housing crisis. The left-wing coalition government responded to the social anger by hurriedly drawing up the two decree-laws in an effort to defuse the protests. The first decree included the suspension of evictions of vulnerable tenants until 2030, a two-year extension to rental leases due to expire before 2028, tax increases for tourist apartments, and a restriction on the purchase of residential properties by what the government calls "vulture funds".
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