The Government finalizes the budget agreement with the Commons

BarcelonaAn agreement has been reached between the Catalan government and the Comuns party for the 2026 budget. After 10 days of express negotiations, President Salvador Illa and the leader of Comuns in the Catalan Parliament, Jéssica Albiach, signed the pact in the Gothic gallery of the Palau de la Generalitat this Thursday, once the main obstacle was overcome. the prohibition of speculative housing purchaseswhich the PSC has finally accepted. Both parties have agreed to a reform of the urban planning law with the aim that, if it secures sufficient majorities, the ban on speculation by large property owners will come into effect before the summer.

The budget agreement, which includes measures on housing, health, and security, is an important step, but not enough for Isla to approve what would be the first budget of the legislature – currently, he governs with the extended 2023 budget from Pere Aragonès. The government still has to convince its most recalcitrant partner, ERC, and must do so against the clock if it wants to have the budget approved by the end of March or the beginning of April.

At a press conference, the leader of Comuns, Jéssica Albiach, expressed her group's "satisfaction" with the agreements reached and guaranteed that they will remain "vigilant" to ensure their implementation. No details have been given regarding the timeline or how the Catalan government is approaching negotiations with the Republicans, arguing that this is a matter for Salvador Illa's party to explain. No member of the Catalan government has appeared to report on the agreement. However, sources within the executive branch emphasized that the pact "focuses on bold housing policies and improvements to essential public services of the welfare state." "This is a first step towards achieving the goal of approving the new budget, so necessary for Catalonia to move towards higher levels of well-being and a more shared economic and social prosperity model," they added.

Housing and trains

Housing and trains are the two key issues that the Comuns party has set for these negotiations. The agreement raises the amount of the Generalitat's own resources allocated to housing policies to €1.25 billion. Around €300 million will be used for purchases, to continue expanding the public housing stock, while another €300 million will finance rental assistance (€100 million more than before). In fact, the Comuns party had already announced this on Wednesday. the agreement to extend these benefits to family units with an annual income of around 36,000 euros and raise the rental income limit for accessing the benefit to €855 (in the case of Barcelona, ​​to €1,135). €150 million will be allocated to rehabilitation and another €600 million through the Catalan Finance Institute, with the goal of rehabilitating 150,000 apartments this legislative term. Regarding sanctions, an agreement has been reached to add 100 more inspectors from the Generalitat (Catalan government), bringing the total number of agents monitoring compliance with regulations on rent caps, advertising, and use under the seasonal rental law to 200. Furthermore, in the area of ​​mobility, the commuter rail crisis has spurred the Comuns (Barcelona en Comú party) to put forward urgent measures to improve train service. One of the new features is the incorporation of management agreements with the Generalitat (Catalan government) so that railway infrastructure works can be carried out from Catalonia – for example, through the new investment consortium being negotiated by ERC (Republican Left of Catalonia). However, this is an issue that the Government must negotiate with the State. In addition, the bus network will be reinforced with €21 million. The agreement also includes the Government's commitment to maintain the 50% discount on the T-Usual and T-Joven travel cards until the end of the legislature, as was already announced a few weeks ago – currently the Generalitat pays 30% of the discount, and the State the remaining 20%.

Interior and Taxes

The Catalan left-wing coalition En Comú Podem has used the talks to try to tighten restrictions on the Interior Ministry's use of pepper spray, something they strongly criticized when the Mossos d'Esquadra (Catalan police) used it against protesters during the strike in defense of Palestine. Now, the government has committed to following United Nations recommendations and adopting protocols to prevent its use in cases of "passive resistance," as well as guaranteeing the geolocation and audio and video recording of all foam bullet deployments. In education, 100,000 new school meal grants have been created to reach 30% coverage for Catalan students, along with a plan to install air conditioning in schools. Regarding social rights, a plan to combat homelessness with a minimum budget of €30 million by 2026 has been agreed upon. However, no agreement has been reached to analyze proposals "for reform in the area of ​​wealth taxation to prevent tax evasion and avoidance mechanisms and guarantee wealth distribution." The fight against tax fraud will also be strengthened.

112 and the casualties

The agreement includes recurring commitments from budget agreements of recent years, such as the in-house management of the 112 emergency services, the commitment to allocate 2% of the budget to culture, and the reduction of healthcare waiting lists. In this last area, the document outlines the creation of two €25 vouchers for young people to use for menstrual products and condoms. These measures will be managed by the Department of Health, not the Department of Equality and Feminism, unlike the campaign for reusable feminine hygiene products launched by former Minister Tània Verge. The section on agreements regarding health also includes a commitment stemming from... Regarding the controversy over the incentive plan for CAPs to shorten sick leaveThis, according to the Comuns party, should put a stop to what the Health Minister, Olga Pané, had initially proposed. "The Department of Health will guarantee that no doctor or primary care management team will see their pay reduced due to the duration or amount of sick leave, always prioritizing the prescription and monitoring of sick leave based on professional criteria." However, the Health Department's proposal did not call for a reduction in the base budget of these healthcare teams, but rather for providing incentives (and therefore additional funds) to centers that achieved such a reduction.