SPAIN SET TO LOSE VOTES ON EMERGENCY HOUSING MEASURES

Spain's Parliament looked set to reject two government decrees aimed at addressing housing affordability when it convened on Friday, after the Catalan separatist party Junts said it would vote against both measures. Junts' support was considered essential for the decrees to pass. The measures were drawn up in response to public anger following the televised eviction of an 87-year-old woman, Maricarmen Abascal, from her Madrid home last week, which prompted protests and an ongoing occupation of one of the city's main squares. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez's coalition government faces a legislative defeat that is likely to intensify the demonstrations, according to reports from the session. Abascal remains in hospital after being removed from her home on a stretcher, though her lawyer said she is pleased to learn she will be able to return there after the company that evicted her reversed its position under public and political pressure.

The first decree sought to halt evictions of vulnerable people, restrict short-term lets, make property speculation more difficult, and offer tax incentives for renting and housebuilding. The second, more contested proposal, would have made tenancy agreements renew automatically upon expiry, effectively rendering them indefinite, and would have required landlords to pay tenants 12 months' rent to end a contract early. Spain has a comparatively small rental market, and many residents report being priced out of home ownership. Abascal's case has become a focal point for campaigners pressing for lower housing costs across the country.

Parliament's 350 seats were due to vote on the decrees at a session starting at 11am on Friday. Barring an unexpected change, the outcome was expected to represent a setback for Sánchez's progressive coalition government. The vote outcome was expected to fuel the protests already under way in Madrid's main square, where demonstrators have maintained a camp-in since Abascal's eviction. No further legislative steps were confirmed in the reports.