Spain’s parliament rejects gov’t housing decrees amid mass protests

What the report says

Spain’s parliament has rejected two government decrees designed to address a worsening housing affordability crisis, dealing a setback to Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez’s coalition in the 350-seat lower house. Al Jazeera reported that the votes came as public anger over rents and evictions had grown, with hundreds of people demonstrating outside parliament in Madrid while lawmakers debated the measures.

The proposals were aimed at different parts of the rental market. One would have expanded protections for vulnerable tenants, added limits on short-term leases, and offered tax incentives to encourage more renting and new housing supply. The other sought to make leases renew automatically, effectively turning them into open-ended contracts unless a property owner paid compensation equivalent to 12 months’ rent to end the agreement.

The measures were opposed by Junts, the Catalan separatist party, as well as the centre-right Popular Party and the far-right Vox. Junts argued the decrees could push owners to remove homes from the rental market and worsen shortages. Sanchez, who leads a coalition with the left-wing Sumar alliance, had urged lawmakers to support the changes, framing them as help for renters, young adults and families under pressure from rising housing costs.

The vote follows protests intensified by the eviction of 87-year-old Maria del Carmen Abascal, known as Maricarmen, in Madrid. More broadly, the story reflects a housing crunch that has been building in Spain for years, with average rents and sale prices rising sharply, according to market data cited by Al Jazeera.